DS  171   .W5  1877 
Wheeler,  S[usan]  A[nna 

(Brookings) ] 
Daughters  of  Armenia 


Daughters  of  Armenia. 


BY  MRS.  S.  A.  WHEELER, 

MISSIONARY  IN  TURKEY. 


"  On  the  banks  of  the  ancient  Euphrates, 
Where  woman  fell  under  God's  frown, 
Armenia's  Daughters  are  coming. 
Their  King  and  Redeemer  to  crown." 


American  Tract  Society, 

150  NASSAU  STREET,  NEW  YORK. 


COPYRIGHT,  1877, 
BY  AMERICAN  TRACT  SOCIETY. 


INTRODUCTION. 


At  a  time  when  so  much  is  said  concerning 
woman's  place  and  work  in  the  church,  and  when 
especially  our  sisters,  young  and  old,  are  waking 
up  to  new  interest  in  foreign  missions,  a  Httle  vol- 
ume of  facts  and  incidents,  showing  what  may  be, 
by  what  has  been  accomplished  in  one  part  of  the 
wide  world-field,  we  believe  can  not  fail  to  be 
acceptable  and  useful.  While  making  those  who 
already  feel  an  interest  in  this  work,  more  intelli- 
gent in  regard  to  its  methods  and  successes,  and 
thus  more  efficient  in  planning,  laboring  and  pray- 
ing for  it,  ^^e  hope  to  do  much  to  convince  those 
hitherto  indifferent,  of  their  responsibility,  and  also 
to  encourage  the  little  ones  to  do  their  part  in 
the  holy  and  blessed  work  of  bringing  back  a  lost 
world  to  Jesus. 

How  many  unhappy,  because  practically  useless 
lives  are  there  even  among  Christian  women,  who 
if  once  possessed  by  an  intelligent  enthusiasm  to 


4 


INTROD  UCTION. 


labor  for  Christ,  abroad  or  at  kome,  would,  while 
doing  good  service  for  the  Master,  bless  their  own 
souls  with  a  fulness  of  joy  hitherto  unknown. 

To  aid  in  giving  such  joy  to  her  Christian  sis- 
ters in  America,  and  to  their  children,  the  author 
affectionately  dedicates  this  little  volume  to  them, 
praying  that  her  labor  of  love  may  not  be  in  vain 
in  the  Lord. 

A  MISSIONARY. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 
Who  are  the  Armenians  ?  -page  7 

CHAPTER  II. 
Religion  of  the  Armenians  -  •   14 

CHAPTER  III. 
How  we  Reached  the  ^Yomen   -   28 

CHAPTER  IV. 
The  Best  Way  to  Help  Them   38 

CHAPTER  V. 
The  Village-School  Teacher  --  48 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Mariam,  the  Hoghi  Bible- Woman     60 

CHAPTER  VII. 
Visit  to  Hoghi     72 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Light  in  Dark  Homes  •   81 


6  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IX. 
A  Visit  to  Ichmeh  •■    93 

CHAPTER  X. 
Across  the  Euphrates   -  loi 

CHAPTER  XL 
At  the  Feast   log 

CHAPTER  XII. 
Gulaser's  Household  —  116 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
Tour  Continued  and  Ended   128 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
Does  it  Pay  .'^  142 


Daughters  of  Armenia. 

CHAPTER  I. 

IVHO  ARE  THE  ARMENIANS? 

This  question  my  little  girl  asked  me  one  day 
as  we  were  sitting  together  at  our  work ;  and  per- 
haps my  little  readers  will  like  to  know  what  I  said 
to  her. 

Susie  was  born  in  Armenia,  for  her  papa  and 
raamraa  were  missionaries  in  that  country ;  but 
when  she  came  to  America  on  a  visit,  the  people 
would  insist  on  calling  her  "  a  little  Turk."  She 
remembered  the  people  who  came  to  her  papa's 
meetings  and  to  mamma's  school,  and  she  knew 
they  were  not  Turks  ;  and  yet  she  could  not  ex- 
plain the  difference ;  so  she  did  as  most  children 
do,  and  as  it  is  very  proper  they  should  so,  she 
came  and  asked  mother. 

"Besides,"  she  said,  "the  folks  say  the  Turks 


8  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


are  very  cruel  and  wicked.  Are  they,  mamma  ? 
We  used  to  go  to  their  vineyards,  and  they  were 
very  kind  to  us.  They  gave  us  fruits  and  sweet 
drink,  and  brought  cushions  for  us  to  sit  upon 
under  the  trees.  Did  you  not  think  Hassan  Agha 
and  his  wife  very  pleasant  people  ^.  And  you  know, 
mamma,  that  Mahmet,  their  boy,  made  brother 
Willie  a  good  many  curious  little  toys.  He  always 
seemed  so  pleasant  when  he  came  to  our  house 
that  I  never  felt  afraid  of  him,  and  yet  I  know  he 
was  a  Turk. 

"And  the  Turks  are  not  black  and  ugly-look- 
ing, as  some  here  seem  to  think,  are  they,  mamma 
I  wish  they  could  see  the  pretty  girl  who  used  to 
bring  us  sour  milk  when  we  were  at  our  summer- 
room  ;  you  know,  the  one  who  married  a  captain 
in  the  Turkish  army.  How  beautiful  she  looked 
when  she  called  upon  us  one  day  in  the  city  with 
her  mother.  You  had  some  cake  and  tea  brought, 
and  she  threw  her  long  veil  back,  and  we  could  see 
her  bright  orange  silk  jacket  and  the  jewels  on  her 
neck  and  wrists,  and  her  eyes  so  black  and  soft. 
She  was  not  ugly-looking,  I  am  sure. 

"  Mamma,  what  makes  the  people  hate  the 
Turks }  Papa  read  in  the  newspaper  the  other  day 
about  a  minister  in  England,  who  said,  '  It  is  time 


WHO  ARE  THE  ARMENIANS 


the  Turks  were  wiped  out  of  the  earth.'  It  must 
be  he  did  not  know  much  about  them.  Perhaps 
he  had  only  heard  about  the  wicked  soldiers  who 
killed  the  poor  Bulgarians,  and  felt  angry  with  all 
the  Turks.  Do  n't  you  think  it  would  have  been 
better  if  he  had  prayed  that  they  might  all  become 
Christians,  and  learn  war  no  more  ?" 

Susie  chatted  on  awhile,  bringing  up  pleasant 
memories  of  our  home  in  the  East ;  and  then  rec- 
ollecting she  had  begun  with  an  important  ques- 
tion, she  waited  for  the  answer. 

I  think  myself  the  Turks  are  a  very  interesting 
people,  and  hope  the  time  is  not  far  distant  when 
they  will  become  Christians.  Now  they  are  Mo- 
hammedans, or  followers  of  Mohammed.  They 
believe  in  God,  but  not  in  Jesus  Christ.  They 
acknowledge  that  Christ  was  a  prophet,  but  not  so 
great  as  Mohammed,  and  they  will  not  receive  Him 
as  the  Son  of  God.  But  we  will  not  talk  about 
them  to-day.  As  we  began  about  the  Armenians, 
I  will  explain  to  you  who  they  are. 

If  you  will  get  the  Bible  and  turn  to  the  third 
verse  of  the  tenth  chapter  of  Genesis,  you  will  find 
the  name  Togarmah  mentioned  as  a  grandson  of 
Japheth,  one  of  the  sons  of  Noah.  Perhaps  Togar- 
mah used  to  sit  on  his  grandfather's  knee  and  lis- 

Daughters  of  Armenia.  2 


lo  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


ten  while  he  told  him  about  the  ark  that  his  father 
built ;  how  the  people  laughed  at  him,  and  even  the 
carpenters  mockingly  asked  where  he  would  find 
water  enough  to  float  such  a  large,  awkward  ship. 
And  how  interested  he  must  have  been  to  hear 
about  the  animals  coming,  two  and  two,  to  enter 
the  ark,  and  how  the  very  heavens  were  black  with 
the  birds  that  came  flying  in  from  every  quarter. 
Then  when  everything  was  ready,  how  Noah  was 
directed  to  take  all  his  family  in,  and  that  God  him- 
self shut  the  door,  so  that  it  could  not  be  opened 
till  the  flood  was  passed.  Perhaps  he  asked,  with 
wistful  look  and  a  tearful  eye,  about  those  that  were 
left  out,  and  his  grandfather  told  him  with  sad  tones 
how  they  begged  to  be  taken  in,  but  the  door  was 
shut,  so  that  Noah  could  not  open  it,  though  he 
was  very  sorry  for  them. 

After  he  had  listened  to  these  stories,  how  beau- 
tiful the  rainbow  must  have  looked  to  Togarmah  as 
it  spanned  the  heavens  with  its  bright  belt  after  a 
heavy  rain,  which  perhaps  made  him  think  God 
would  again  drown  the  world ;  and  how  he  thanked 
God,  who  had  set  his  sign  in  the  clouds  to  assure 
us  that  he  would  no  more  destroy  the  earth  with  a 
flood.  The  rainbow,  I  have  no  doubt,  seemed  more 
to  him  than  it  does  to  us,  and  brighter  too,  for  it 


WHO  ARE  THE  ARMENIANS! 


looks  much  brighter  in  Turkey  than  in  this  part  of 
the  world.  It  is  because  the  atmosphere  is  clearer. 
The  heavens  at  night,  when  the  moon  is  absent,  are 
very  brilliant,  and  I  have  seen  sunsets  there  when 
it  seemed  as  if  the  very  "gates  of  glory"  were 
opened  in  the  western  sky. 

Before  we  shut  up  the  Bible  let  us  turn  to  the 
twenty-fourth  verse  of  the  same  chapter,  and  there 
let  me  introduce  to  you  one  of  Togarmah's  cousins, 
young  Eber,  or  Heber.  He  is  about  the  same  age 
as  Togarmah,  but  his  face  has  a  little  more  of  the 
olive  hue,  though  they  resemble  each  other.  Eber's 
father  was  a  son  of  Shem,  the  brother  of  Japheth. 
These  boys,  I  dare  say,  played  together  often  at  the 
foot  of  ]\Iount  Ararat,  where  the  ark  rested  after  the 
flood.  Perhaps  they  sometimes  climbed  up  the 
steep  sides  to  find  some  relic  of  the  old  home  of 
their  grandfather. 

The  people  of  those  days  must  often  have  talk- 
ed about  the  deluge,  and  believed  it  had  been,  for 
we  find  by  the  Bible  that  some  of  them  very  soon 
planned  to  build  a  tower  that  would  reach  up  to 
heaven,  so  that  if  another  flood  should  come  they 
might  all  be  safe.  Then  God  was  displeased ;  for 
had  he  not  promised  that  this  should  never  be,  put- 
ting his  own  seal  on  his  promise,  the  beautiful  rain 


12  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


bow  of  which  I  have  just  spoken  ?  He  sent  a  con- 
fusion of  tongues  among  these  unbeUeving  build- 
ers, and  they  were  scattered  in  the  earth.  Eber 
went  towards  the  northwest,  and  settled  in  Ur  of 
the  Chaldees,  and  Abraham,  the  father  of.  the  He- 
brew or  Jewish  nation,  came  from  him.  Togarmah 
went  towards  the  north,  and  we  read  about  his  de- 
scendants in  Ezekiel,  with  other  great  nations,  as 
bringing  merchandise  to  the  great,  proud  city  of 
Tyre.  History  tells  us  that  the  people  who  descend- 
ed from  Togarmah  became  a  brave  and  warlike  na- 
tion, ruling  over  a  large  part  of  Asia  Minor.  The 
last  king  of  this  people  died  more  than  a  hundred 
years  before  America  was  discovered  by  Columbus, 
and  since  then  they  have  been  a  subjected  nation, 
often  suffering  from  hard  and  hopeless  oppression. 

And  now  perhaps  you  will  ask,  as  Susie  did, 
how  we  found  out  all  this.  I  will  tell  you.  Partly 
from  the  Bible,  partly  from  books  of  history,  and 
also  from  writings  and  images  carved  on  rocks  and 
on  the  ruins  of  forts,  castles,  and  bridges  all  through 
that  country.  These  are  very  curious  and  abun- 
dant. 

But  in  spite  of  changes  and  sufferings,  this  peo- 
ple retain  much  of  their  nobleness  of  character  and 
their  love  of  religion.    They  have  lost,  in  some  re- 


WHO  ARE  THE  ARMENIANS  1 


gions,  their  national  Unguage,  but  have  preserved 
their  customs  and  habits.  They  are  industrious, 
perhaps  more  so  than  any  other  nation  in  Asia 
Minor.  Dr.  Dwight  calls  them  the  Anglo-Saxons 
of  that  land,  and  thinks  them  among  the  most  hope- 
ful of  the  many  nations  found  in  the  Turkish  em- 
pire. They  are  very  patriotic.  Their  national 
hymns  often  bring  tears  to  the  eyes  of  strangers. 

Now  I  have  told  you  who  these  Armenians  are ; 
if  you  will  take  your  map,  we  will  see  if  we  can 
find  their  country.  There  it  is,  bounded  on  the 
north  by  the  Black  sea  and  Georgia,  a  province  in 
Russia;  on  the  east  by  the  Caspian  sea;  on  the 
south  by  Mesopotamia  and  Assyria  ;  and  on  the 
west  by  Asia  Minor.  Their  country  has  been  con- 
quered and  divided  between  three  governments, 
Persia,  Russia,  and  Turkey,  the  territories  of  the 
three  joining  at  Mount  Ararat,  which  you  see  on 
the  map. 


14  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA, 


CHAPTER  II. 
THE  RELIGION  OF  THE  ARMENIANS. 

"  Mamma,  what  was  the  earliest  religion  of  the 
Armenians  ?"  said  Susie  to  me  one  day.  "  Were 
they  Mohammedans,  like  the  Turks  T 

No,  indeed !  Mohammedanism  did  not  arise 
till  the  seventh  century,  while  the  Armenians  be- 
came Christians  hundreds  of  years  before.  Their 
earliest  religion  was  idolatry.  And  so  was  that  of 
the  Turks,  a  conquering  horde  from  Tartary,  who 
about  the  tenth  century  overran  Armenia,  and  after- 
wards Asia  Minor.  These  Turks  early  adopted  the 
faith  of  Mohammed,  but  the  Armenians  did  not. 
They  look  upon  those  who  turn  from  Christianity 
to  Mohammedanism  as  most  infamous  in  character, 
and  beyond  all  hope  of  salvation  through  Christ.  I 
have  heard  them  say  that  to  become  a  Mohamme- 
dan is  to  commit  the  unpardonable  sin  spoken  of 
in  the  Bible. 

But  to  understand  better  about  the  Armenians 
we  must  go  back  to  the  first  century.  They  had 
forgotten  the  God  of  Noah  and  of  Japheth,  and  had 


RELIGION  OF  THE  ARMENIANS.  15 


turned  from  the  worship  of  the  Creator  to  created 
things.  If  we  go  to  the  banks  of  the  old  Hiddekel, 
or  Tigris,  we  find  a  large  Armenian  graveyard, 
where  the  peculiar  form  of  the  gravestones  shows 
that  the  people  buried  there  were  once  sun-wor- 
shippers. Their  own  history  says  that  they  have 
been  converted  to  Christianity  twice.  The  first 
time  was  during  the  life  of  our  Saviour  upon  earth. 
One  of  their  kings,  Abgar  by  name,  heard  of  the 
miracles  of  Christ,  believed  on  him,  and  sent  to 
this  "wonderful  man"  to  come  and  visit  him,  prom- 
ising, if  he  would  come,  to  give  him  rest  and  pro- 
tection from  all  his  enemies.  If  you  will  turn  to 
John  12  :20,  21,  you  will  read  of  some  men  called 
Greeks,  who  came  to  Philip,  and  said,  "  Sir,  we 
would  see  Jesus."  It  is  affirmed  that  these  were 
King  Abgar's  messengers.  They  were  called 
Greeks,  because  they  resembled  them  and  spoke 
their  language  ;  just  the  same  as  they  are  now 
called  Turks  by  some  persons,  because  they  speak 
the  Turkish  language.  At  the  Centennial  last  sum- 
mer we  heard  a  good  deal  said  of  the  Turks  who 
were  present ;  and  they  were  not  Turks  at  all,  but 
Greeks  and  Armenians.  The  evangelists  wrote 
just  as  we  should  under  similar  circumstances. 
Their  history  goes  on  to  say  that  Thaddeus, 


1 6  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


one  of  the  apostles,  went  to  Edessa,  their  chief 
city,  and  preached  the  gospel,  and  that  the  people 
became  Christians  at  that  time. 

But  they  must  have  gone  back  from  following 
Christ,  for  we  find  that  three  hundred  years  later 
the  Christian  bishop  Gregory  found  them  idolaters, 
and  was  the  means  of  restoring  them  to  Christian- 
ity. Susie  remembers  hearing  about  Gregory  the 
Illuminator.  The  Armenians  call  St.  Gregory  their 
patron  saint.  He  was  a  member  of  the  royal  fam- 
ily, and  secretary  of  King  Tiridates.  When  he 
became  a  Christian,  the  king  was  very  angry  with 
him,  and  because  he  refused  longer  to  take  part  in 
idolatrous  worship,  he  commanded  him  to  be  im- 
prisoned in  a  gloomy  cave,  where  he  was  kept  for 
fourteen  years.  The  king,  being  afterwards  greatly 
afflicted  with  a  severe  malady,  his  conscience  up- 
braided him  for  his  cruelty  to  his  secretary  and 
friend  Gregory,  and  he  sent  to  the  cave  and  re- 
leased him.  It  is  said  the  king  was  healed  of  his 
disease  and  became  a  Christian,  and  commanded 
all  his  court  to  embrace  this  religion  and  to  be  bap- 
tized in  the  name  of  Christ.  This  was  about  the 
year  318,  and  since  that  time  the  Armenians  have 
been  a  Christian  nation. 

They  did  not  have  the  Bible  in  their  own  Ian- 


RELIGION  OF  THE  ARMENIANS.  17 

guage  for  two  hundred  years  after  that,  when  a 
learned  monk,  by  the  name  of  Mesrob,  invented  an 
alphabet,  and  translated  the  Bible  for  them.  I  do 
not  know  if  they  had  any  books  before  that  time, 
but  we  still  find  inscriptions  on  rocks  and  on  the 
walls  of  the  old  city  Diarbekir  which  are  written 
in  the  old  Armenian  language. 

Mesrob  lived  in  Palu,  a  small  city  on  the  Eu- 
phrates, about  forty  miles  east  of  Harpoot.  This 
city  is  built  around  the  base  of  a  mountain  which 
rises  up  in  the  midst  of  it  like  a  great  sugar-loaf. 
In  the  face  of  a  lofty  cliff  at  the  top  of  this  sugar 
loaf  is  a  cave,  in  which  the  learned  and  pious  Mes- 
rob translated  the  Bible  from  the  Syriac  and  Greek 
languages.  It  was  probably  one  of  the  first  books 
written  with  the  new  alphabet.  -  It  was  completed 
about  the  year  431,  but  was  not  printed  till  more 
than  twelve  hundred  years  after,  when  in  1666 
Bishop  Uscan  was  sent  to  Amsterdam  to  take 
charge  of  the  printing. 

All  this  time  they  used  it  in  the  manuscript 
form,  and  we  still  find  copies  most  beautifully  writ- 
ten on  very  nice  parchment,  plainer  and  more  easi- 
ly read  than  the  printed  copies.  There  is  one  very 
old  Bible  we  used  to  find  wrapped  up  in  several 
embroidered  napkins,  and  put  carefully  into  a  box 

D.mslitevB  of  AimeiUa.  7. 


i8  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

behind  the  altar,  in  one  of  the  old  churches.  But 
I  do  not  know  its  history. 

They  did  not  put  their  manuscripts  into  rolls, 
as  the  Jews  did,  but  bound  them  into  books  like 
ours,  and  they  were  often  illustrated  by  pictures 
made  with  the  pen  in  blue,  red,  and  green  ink. 
And  at  this  time  they  made  many  other  books. 
Historians  tell  us  that  this  fifth  century  was  the 
golden  age  of  Armenian  literature.  The  Bible  had 
the  same  influence  on  their  literature  as  the  Wick- 
liffe  Bible — the  first  English  translation — had  on 
our  own. 

Dr.  Riggs  of  Constantinople  gave  them  the  Bi- 
ble they  now  have,  translated  into  the  modern  or 
spoken  tongue.  This  was  a  much  needed  work, 
for  many  of  the  people  could  not  understand  the 
language  as  it  was  spoken  by  the  learned  or  by  the 
bishops  and  teachers.  Many  of  the  priests  were 
very  ignorant,  and  could  not  read  intelligently  the 
Bible  found  in  their  churches.  You  may  wonder 
at  this;  but  books  were  few  comparatively,  and 
costly,  and  they  had  no  schools  for  all  classes  as 
we  have.  The  people  were  therefore  very  igno- 
rant, and  did  n't  care  much  if  their  priest  was  igno- 
rant too. 

They  did  not  use  the  Bible  much  in  their 


RELIGION  OF  THE  ARMENIANS,  19 

churches,  but  read  more  from  a  book  of  ceremo- 
nies. Doubtless  there  were  many  things  in  this 
book  grounded  upon  the  Bible ;  and  even  when 
Gregory  preached  the  gospel  to  them  it  was  mixed 
with  much  that  is  taught  in  the  Romish  church, 
and  which  we  do  not  receive  because  it  is  not 
taught  in  the  word  of  God.  For  instance,  they 
pray  to  the  virgin  Mary  and  the  other  saints.  They 
think  these  are  near  to  Christ,  and  he  will  surely 
hear  them.  Some  of  the  poor  women  have  often 
said  to  me,  "What  should  we  do  without  the  Vir- 
gin }  She  was  a  woman  like  us,  and  knows  how 
to  pity  us  when  we  are  in  sorrow." 

They  also  pray  for  the  dead  ;  for,  though  they 
do  not  believe  in  what  the  Romanists  call  purga- 
tory, they  seem  to  think  that  in  some  way,  if  the 
priests  go  and  pray  near  the  grave,  it  will  be  better 
for  their  friends. 

In  their  church  they  are  taught,  too,  that  bap- 
tism is  regeneration,  and  that  they  cannot  enter 
heaven  if  unbaptized.  Doubtless  Gregory  meant 
to  teach  that  the  outward  seal  was  the  acknowledg- 
ment of  the  inward  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit ;  but 
if  he  did,  they  have  now  become  content  with  the 
mere  outward  form. 

The  great  head  of  their  church,  called  the  Ca- 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


tholicos,  lives  in  Russia,  and  all  the  bishops  have 
to  go  to  him  for  ordination  ;  then  they  are  qualified 
to  ordain  the  priests.  There  are  two  orders  of 
priests.  The  higher  order,  called  vartabeds,  and 
the  bishops,  are  not  allowed  to  marry,  but  live  in 
monasteries,  or  in  rooms  connected  with  the  church. 
But  the  ordinary  priest  is  not  ordained  until  he  is 
married,  and  then  he  is  expected  to  live  among  the 
people,  visiting  them  at  their  houses  and  mingling, 
freely  among  them. 

His  wife  also  has  a  position  as  priestess.  The 
evening  after  the  priest  is  ordained  the  women  of 
the  parish  come  to  her  house  to  initiate  her  into 
her  new  position  of  honor.  They  have  a  curious 
way  of  doing  this. 

Twelve  cushions  are  put  in  the  most  honorable 
room  in  the  parsonage,  and  she  is  placed  upon  them 
and  becomes  the  queen  of  the  evening.  These 
cushions  indicate  that  she  is  twelve  steps  higher 
than  any  other  woman  in  the  parish.  She  is  there- 
fore expected  to  be  leader  in  all  good  things  which 
women  in  that  land  are  expected  to  know.  If  the 
priestess  dies,  the  priest  cannot  take  a  second  wife, 
but,  if  he  wishes,  he  can  live  in  a  convent,  and  be- 
come a  vartabed  or  a  bishop. 

I  dare  say  my  young  friends  would  like  to  know 


RELIGION  OF  THE  ARMENIANS,  21 


something  of  their  form  of  worship.  Susie  has  seen 
it,  and  thinks  it  very  queer.  If  you  were  to  go  into 
one  of  their  churches,  you  would  see  one  priest 
walking  about  among  the  people,  swinging  a  cen- 
ser in  his  hand,  burning  incense.  Another  would 
be  intoning  prayers,  or  chanting.  Sometimes  the 
priests  and  bishops  are  dressed  in  gaudy  robes  ; 
and  so  are  the  little  boys,  a  number  of  whom  take 
part  in  the  service.  These  all  make  the  sign  of  the 
cross,  burn  incense  before  pictures,  and  ring  little 
bells.  The  people  keep  coming  in  and  going  out. 
The  men  occupy  the  lower  part  of  the  house.  As 
soon  as  they  reach  their  places,  they  make  the  sign 
of  the  cross,  fall  on  their  knees,  and  touch  the  floor 
with  their  foreheads.  This  they  do  several  times 
before  they  give  attention  to  what  the  priests  are 
doing.  The  women,  in  the  gallery,  behind  a  lattice, 
do  the  same  ;  but  they  do  not  give  much  attention 
to  what  the  priests  say,  for  it  is  in  the  ancient  lan- 
guage, which  they  do  not  understand.  I  have  been 
told  that  they  spend  much  of  their  time  in  church 
in  gossiping,  or  making  matches  for  their  mar- 
riageable boys  and  girls. 

They  have  a  great  many  fast-days,  and  if  we 
should  judge  them  by  these,  we  should  think  them 
very  good,  if,  as  they  suppose,  these  fasts  really 


22  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


make  them  better.  There  are  one  hundred  and 
sixty-five  days  in  the  year  when  they  take  no  meat ; 
this  is  what  they  call  fasting.  Some  of  these  days 
they  keep  with  far  greater  care  than  they  do  the 
Sabbath.    They  have  a  great  many  feast-days  too. 

The  observance  of  all  these  ceremonies  is  their 
way  of  going  to  heaven.  When  they  do  wrong 
they  go  to  the  priest  and  confess  ;  and  then,  if  they 
keep  strictly  all  the  forms  of  the  church,  they  con- 
sider themselves  safe.  And  when  they  are  dying, 
if  the  priest  comes,  and  dips  a  piece  of  consecrated 
bread  in  wine,  and  puts  it  on  their  lips,  they  think 
they  are  ready  for  heaven.  How  deluded  and  ig- 
norant are  these  poor  creatures  ! 

And  yet,  as  I  have  sometimes  said,  I  think  there 
are  some  real  Christians  among  them. 

"  Yeghesa's  mother,"  suggests  Susie,  "  how  very 
earnestly  she  would  listen  to  all  you  told  her  about 
the  Lord  Jesus." 

Yes,  I  think  she  was  one  who  really  loved  the 
Lord  Jesus,  though  she  was  very  ignorant.  She 
never  could  seem  to  give  up  her  hold  on  the  Virgin 
Mary,  though  she  came  to  put  her  in  the  second 
place,  rather  than  the  first,  as  she  had  always  done 
before  we  tried  to  teach  her.  When  she  was  dying 
she  called,  in  the  priest  to  come  and  give  her  the 


RELIGION  OF  THE  ARMENIANS. 


23 


communion.  She  had  Hved  so  long  m  her  old 
faith,  that  it  was  hard  to  give  it  up ;  or  perhaps  it 
would  be  better  to  say,  that  she  could  not  give  up 
the  outward  forms,  which  had  become  a  second  na- 
ture. 

Now  all  this  talk  about  the  religion  of  this  peo- 
ple puzzled  Susie.  When  she  heard  me  say  they 
were  Christians,  and  heard  her  papa  remark  that 
they  were  a  very  religious  people,  she  could  not 
understand  it. 

"  It  seems  to  me,"  said  she,  "  they  were  real 
idolaters,  and  I  do  n't  wonder  the  Turks  call  them 
so,  when  they  see  them  kissing  the  cross,  burning 
incense  to  pictures,  and  bringing  out  the  bones  of 
the  saints  on  great  saints'  days,  and  all  that  sort  of 
thing.  It  seems  to  me  they  worshipped  these  and 
the  Virgin  Mary,  as  much  as  they  did  Christ. 
Once  I  went  with  Anna  to  their  church,  and  they 
had  an  image  of  Christ  dressed  and  laid  in  the 
grave,  and  they  said  he  would  rise  from  the  dead  at 
Easter.  Then  they  threw  a  great  silver  cross  into 
a  large  trough  of  water,  and  Anna  said  the  man  who 
would  give  the  most  money,  and  take  it  out,  would 
gain  a  great  deal  of  merit,  and  be  thought  very  pious. 
We  do  'nt  find  any  such  things  in  the  Bible,  and  I 
do  n't  see  how  papa  can  call  them  very  religious." 


24 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


The  word  religion  means  a  system  of  faith  or 
belief  ;  and  any  one  who  adheres  very  strictly  to  his 
system  may  be  said  to  be  very  religious.  To  be 
religious  and  to  be  Christian  are  two  very  different 
things.  Paul  on  Mars'  Hill  calls  the  pagan  Greeks 
very  religious,"  but  he  did  not  mean  to  say  they 
believed  in  the  Bible.  One  day  an  Armenian 
woman  in  high  position  came  to  me,  and  asked  if 
it  was  wrong  for  her  to  wear  her  gold.  She  hoped 
that  she  loved  Christ,  and  was  soon  to  be  admitted 
to  the  Protestant  church  in  Harpoot.  I  said,  "  Eu- 
ghaper,  neither  taking  off  nor  putting  on  gold  is 
Christianity.  To  be  a  Christian  is  to  be  like  Christ. 
If  your  gold  hinders  you  in  this,  take  it  off.  If  you 
think  it  a  hindrance  to  some  poor  weak  sister,  I 
think  you  would  be  happier  to  lay  it  aside."  You 
see  people  may  be  very  religious  who  do  not  really 
live  as  the  Bible  directs. 

The  Armenians  do  believe  the  Bible.  They 
accept  it  as  God's  Book.  The  name  they  give  to 
it  is  God-breath,  which  seems  to  me  very  beautiful. 
I  think  the  masses  of  the  people  suppose  they  are 
living  as  the  Bible  teaches,  but  they  are  very  igno- 
rant. They  know  nothing  about  the  new  birth. 
They  feel  that  they  are  constantly  doing  as  they 
ought  not  to,  and  so  are  ever  anxious  to  go  through 


RELIGION  OF  THE  ARMENIANS.  25 


all  the  forms  prescribed  by  their  priests  and  bish- 
ops, that,  if  possible,  they  may  be  made  better,  and 
fitted  for  heaven.  They  think  the  priests  tell  them 
what  is  in  the  Bible.  The  women  are  more  igno- 
rant than  the  men  ;  so  they  are  more  under  the 
influence  of  the  priests,  and  more  careful  to  do  all 
he  bids  them,  or  as  I  might  say,  are  more  religious 
than  the  men. 

There  was  one  old  woman  who  lived  near  us, 
whom  we  used  to  see  every  morning  coming  from 
the  old  church.  She  was  bent  alrnost  double,  and 
it  seemed  hard  for  her  to  get  along.  She  was  one 
of  the  "  very  religious."  I  never  saw  her  but  I  felt 
rebuked  for  my  own  lack  of  earnestness  in  the  reli- 
gion of  the  Bible.  I  professed  to  love  Christ  and 
to  imitate  him.  I  had  the  Bible,  and  could  read  it 
for  myself,  yet  her  zeal  seemed  far  greater  than 
mine.  I  used  to  pray  that  God  would  show  her 
the  right  way,  and  save  her  in  heaven. 

There  was  another  very  religious  woman,  I  once 
met  with  in  one  of  the  villages  on  Harpoot  plain. 
She  said,  "  Lady,  I  love  you,  and  think  you  are  a 
real  Christian,  but  one  thing  you  say  I  cannot  re- 
ceive. You  say  the  virgin  Mary  is  not  our  inter- 
cessor. What  should  we  women  do,  if  we  could 
not  call  upon  the  virgin  when  in  trouble,  or  suffer- 

Daughters  of  Armenia.  A 


26  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


ing  ?  She  was  a  woman,  and  knows  how  to  pity 
women  Hke  us."    This  is  what  they  all  say. 

I  told  her  that  Jesus,  the  son  of  Mary,  was  also 
the  Son  of  God,  and  could  do  more  for  us  than 
Mary  could  ;  that  Mary  herself  must  find  salvation 
through  this  same  Saviour,  for  "  there  is  no  other 
name  given  under  heaven  and  among  men  whereby 
we  can  be  saved."  She  was  very  much  shocked 
that  I  should  think  the  virgin  Mary  needed  salva- 
tion at  all.  It  seemed  to  her  like  blasphemy,  and 
I  presume  she  made  the  sign  of  the  cross  many 
times  while  talking  with  me,  lest  she  should  be  led 
away  by  such  dreadful  heresy. 

I  do  not  know  if  she  ever  became  a  Protestant, 
though  at  this  time  her  eldest  son  was  a  member 
of  the  Protestant  church,  and  before  she  died  all 
her  family  became  Protestants.  I  think  she  did 
change  some  in  her  views  of  Christ  as  her  only 
Saviour.  She  loved  her  eldest  son  very  dearly,  and 
thought  he  was  a  better  man  after  he  became  a 
Protestant ;  but  the  religion  of  her  childhood  clung 
to  her  to  the  very  last.  Her  sons  had  no  doubt  of 
her  acceptance  before  God  ;  they  felt  that  she  lived 
very  near  to  the  standard  which  Christ  laid  down 
for  his  disciples. 

It  seemed  to  me  when  I  went  to  Armenia,  ancj 


RELIGION  OF  THE  ARMENIANS. 


27 


became  acquainted  with  the  people  and  their  reli- 
gion, that  they  only  needed  to  have  the  Bible 
brought  to  them  in  a  language  they  could  under- 
stand, and  to  be  taught  to  read  it,  to  become  as 
much  a  Christian  nation  as  our  own.  They  are 
to  me  a  very  interesting  people,  though  when  I 
first  reached  them  all  was  "  strange  and  new,"  and 
at  times  I  felt  a  little  lonely  and  homesick.  When 
I  looked  from  my  window,  down  the  city  of  Har- 
poot,  with  its  houses  made  of  sundried  bricks,  the 
scene  was  unlike  anything  I  had  ever  beheld  be- 
fore. I  had  read  of  old  ruins  and  castles,  and  now 
I  was  in  the  midst  of  them.  The  house  we  lived 
in  seemed  more  like  a  great  castle  than  a  house. 
Then  the  people  in  the  streets,  and  all  around  us, 
and  the  sounds  that  greeted  my  ears  made  me  feel 
that  I  was  a  stranger  in  a  strange  land.  It  did  not 
seemed  much  like  the  garden  of  Eden,  that  God 
made  so  beautiful  for  Adam  and  Eve  to  live  in. 

Why,  mamma,"  exclaims  Susie,  "  was  that  the 
very  same  old  garden  of  Eden  we  read  about  in 
Genesis  V 

"To  be  sure.  Read  Genesis  2  : 10-14,  and  you 
will  see  why  so  many  people  believe  that  it  was 
just  there." 


28  DA  UGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


CHAPTER  III. 

HOW  WE  REACHED  THE  WOMEN. 

It  seemed  strange  to  Susie,  and  I  dare  say  will 
appeaf  quite  as  strange  to  you,  my  young  readers, 
to  learn  that  though  the  Armenians  have  the  Bible, 
they  are  very  ignorant  of  its  contents  ;  and  this  is 
particularly  true  of  the  women.  When  I  went  to 
my  missionary  work  in  Harpoot  twenty  years  ago, 
I  did  not  find  a  single  woman  who  could  read  the 
Bible.  They  did  not  think  it  was  written  for  women 
at  all. 

One  woman  went  to  her  priest  or  minister,  and 
asked  him  if  it  was  wrong  for  her  to  learn  to  read 
it.  She  had  heard  that  the  women  in  some  parts 
of  their  land  had  begun  to  do  so,  and  she  desired 
very  much  to  read  it  herself.  Her  priest  replied, 
"  Are  you  going  to  be  a  priest  that  you  should  read 
the  Bible  She  made  no  answer  to  him,  but 
hastened  away  lest  he  should  question  her  and  find 
out  the  longing  in  her  heart,  and  forbid  her. 

Missionaries  had  been  laboring  among  this  peo- 
ple many  years  before  we  -went  there,  and  the 
women  in  many  parts  oi  the  country  were  acqui- 


HOW  WE  REACHED  THE  WOMEN.  29 

ring  a  knowledge  of  the  blessed  Book.  But  in  Har- 
poot,  where  we  were  sent,  the  work  was  new. 

It  was  quite  hard  to  get  at  the  women  at  first. 
They  did  not  come  to  see  us  ;  they  were  afraid  of  us. 
They  said  we  were  wicked  women.  "  Do  you  not 
know  that  these  women  that  read  are  leather-faces } 
See  their  uncovered,  shameless  faces.  Do  you  wish 
to  be  like  them  V  their  priests  would  say,  to  keep 
them  from  coming  to  us.  And  when  we  went  into 
the  streets  they  would  call  to  one  another,  "  The 
women  who  wear  washbowls  on  their  heads  are 
coming."  Then  the  boys  would  gather  at  the 
corners,  and  sometimes  a  stone  would  go  whistling 
by  us,  and  they  would  run  and  cry  out,  "Prote! 
Prote  !"  (Protestant.)  Sometimes  a  stream  of  dirty 
water  would  come  down  from  a  high  roof,  and  we 
would  just  escape  an  unpleasant  showerbath.  Per- 
haps they  would  exclaim,  "  Beg  your  pardon,  we  did 
not  see  you,"  but  we  knew  it  was  meant  as  an 
insult. 

One  day  I  went  out  with  a  woman  who  had  be- 
come a  Protestant,  and  as  we  were  passing  through 
a  ward  of  the  city  where  I  was  a  stranger,  several 
children  stopped,  looked  at  me  for  a  moment,  and 
then  cried  out,  "  Shatan,"  (Satan,)  "Jeen!  Jeen !" 
and  ran  away  as  fast  as  they  could.    I  asked  the 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


woman  what  they  meant  by  "Jeen."  "The  evil 
one,"  she  replied :  "  did  you  not  see  how  they  ran  ? 
They  were  afraid  of  you." 

Perhaps  some  of  you  may  think  these  things 
would  make  me  laugh,  or  else  make  me  angry. 
But  no,  I  pitied  them.  I  did  not  feel  much  like 
"  the  evil  one,"  for  I  had  gone  out  to  call  on  their 
mothers  and  try  to  persuade  them  to  read  the  Bible, 
and  to  let  their  children  come  to  the  schools  we 
wished  to  help  them  open.  I  knew  that  all  this 
fear  and  ignorance  was  because  they  did  not  know 
God's  blessed  word. 

By-and-by;  however,  after  a  long  time,  they 
overcame  their  fears  and  prejudice  enough  to  come 
to  our  home.  They  wanted  to  see  how  we  lived, 
how  we  dressed,  and  what  we  ate.  They  would 
sometimes  pull  at  our  braided  hair,  and  say,  "  Why 
do  you  put  up  your  hair  in  a  knot  at  the  back  of 
your  head^  We  wear  ours  in  small  braids  down 
our  backs."  We  told  them  custom  made  us  to 
differ.  Then  they  would  examine  my  dress  so 
closely,  that  I  had  to  say  to  them  very  decidedly, 
"  Olemaz,"  (This  wont  do,)  and  they  would  laugh 
and  turn  to  something  else.  Everything  we  had 
was  new  to  them,  and  it  was  often  very  amusing  to 
hear  them  talk  to  each  other  about  us. 


HOW  WE  REACHED  THE  WOMEN.  31 


"  Do  you  know  that  these  women  sit  at  the  same 
/  table  with  their  husbands  and  eat  with  them  ?"  said 
one. 

"Yes,  and  I  heard  that  when  one  of  them  was 
;sick,  her  husband  took  her  up  and  put  her  on  the 
/couch;  then  he  helped  make  her  bed,  and  when  it 
/  was  ready,  he  lifted  her  in  as  carefully  as  you  would 
a  child.    Just  think  of  our  husbands  doing  that !" 

"Oh,  we  are  only  donkeys.  We  do  not  know 
how  to  read,  as  these  women  do,"  said  the  first. 

Then,  in  our  broken  Armenian,  we  replied,  "  Yes, 
we  read  God's  word,  this  letter  sent  down  from 
heaven  for  us  all ;  and  this  is  the  reason  why  our 
husbands  are  so  kind  to  us.  Our  fathers  and  broth- 
ers would  not  have  consented  to  our  coming  away 
out  here  with  these  men,  if  they  had  not  known 
that  they  too  read  and  loved  the  Bible,  and  so  would 
be  kind  to  us,  and  care  for  us  when  we  are  sick, 
with  no  loving  mother  near." 

"  That  is  true !"  said  a  woman,  rather  braver 
than  the  rest,  and  who,  I  am  sure,  will  soon  be  read- 
ing for  herself.  We  had  invited  our  visitors  this 
day  to  sit  down,  and  Garabed,  our  helper,  had 
■  brought  in  some  tea  in  tiny  little  cups.  It  would 
have  been  considered  very  impolite  in  us  not  to 
offer  some  refreshment.    It  was  their  custom,  and 


32  nA  UGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


we  complied  with  their  customs  when  they  were 
proper  and  right. 

While  they  sat  there,  sipping  their  tea,  this 
woman  said  to  her  next  neighbor, 

"  I  do  n't  believe  these  women  are  so  wicked  as 
our  priests  say.  This  one  seems  very  gentle  and 
kind,  does  n't  she 

After  the  tea-drinking,  they  go  to  their  homes 
to  think  and  talk  over  these  things,  while  others 
come  to  see  the  house  and  the  strange  housekeeper. 
/  "  Can  you  work  asks  one.  "  Your  hands  look 
/  too  small  to  do  anything." 

"  I  wish  you  could  see  her  in  the  kitchen,"  says 
Garabed,  wdio  has  just  invited  them  into  the  neat 
sitting-room.  "  She  can  do  twice  as  much  work  as 
I  can,  she  knows  how  to  do  everything." 

"It  is  because  she  reads,"  says  one  who  looks 
wiser  than  the  rest.  "  That  is  the  way  with  these 
people  who  can  read.  They  are  not  like  us,  only 
animals.  She  makes  all  her  own  dresses  too.  She 
does  not  send  them  to  the  tailor,  as  we  do.  And 
she  can  knit  a  stocking  in  a  day,  and  it  takes  us  a 
week.  Have  you  heard  of  that  wonderful  sewing 
machine  that  some  ladies  in  America  sent  to  help 
her  do  her  work  V 

Then  they  must  all  see  that  wonder  of  wonders, 


HOW  WE  REACHED  THE  WOMEN.  33 

and  every  one  wants  a  sample  of  the  stitching  to 
show  some  of  her  friends  at  home. 

The  pictures  on  the  walls  are  discussed  too,  and 
some  one  who  has  visited  us  before  says,  "  Do  you 
know  that  is  the  picture  of  her  mother-in-law  ? 
She  had  only  one  son,  and  she  was  willing  that  he 
should  come  out  here  to  teach  us.  Ah,  their  reli- 
gion is  not  like  ours  !  I  feel  sure  we  should  never 
do  such  a  thing  !  They  learn  this  from  the  Bible. 
The  hanum  (lady)  says  it  teaches  them  to  love  oth- 
ers. Why  did  you  come  to  this  land,  hanum  Do 
you  not  love  your  friends }  I  could  not  leave  my 
friends,  and  go  over  so  far  as  Bolis  (Constantinople), 
and  they  say  you  have  come  much  farther.  Could 
you  not  get  your  living  in  your  own  land 

"  Oh,  she  is  paid  for  coming  here,"  says  Mariam. 
"  Do  n't  you  know  she  is  poor,  and  all  these  things 
are  given  her  for  her  coming  here  to  make  Protes 
of  us  They  give  money  to  anybody  who  will 
become  a  Prote,  our  priests  say,  and  they  know." 

"  That 's  not  like  our  Bible,"  pointing  to  one  on 
the  table,  "it  is  the  Prote  Bible.  Our  priest  has 
pronounced  a  curse  on  all  these  people.  He  says 
they  are  wolves  in  sheep's  clothing  ;  and  our  Bible 
says  that  just  such  false  prophets  shall  come  in  the 
last  days. 

Diiuglitevs  of  Armenia.  5 


34  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


"  These  people  pretend  to  be  good,  but  they  are 
only  dividers  of  families.  Have  you  not  heard  how 
Haji  Bedros  has  driven  his  son  Hohannes  out  of  his 
house,  because  he  brought  home  one  of  these  Prote 
Bibles,  and  insists  on  reading  it  to  his  wife  ?" 

"  Did  Yeghesa,  his  wife,  go  with  him  ?"  asks  one 
of  the  women. 

Yes,  and  the  Protes  gave  them  a  room,  and  a 
bed  to  sleep  on,  and  sent  them  in  food.  They  help 
all  who  come  to  them,  and  that  is  the  reason  why 
they  get  people  to  believe  them.  My  husband 
came  home  last  night,  and  said  he  would  like  to 
drive  them  all  out  of  the  land,  for  they  were  not 
only  dividing  families,  but  turning  the  city  upside 
down  ;  he  heard  nothing,  wherever  he  went,  but 
discussions  about  these  people.  Men  get  together 
in  the  market-places,  and  you  would  think  by  their 
noise  and  talk,  that  some  great  thing  had  happened  ; 
but  it  is  all  about  these  Protes.  Garabed  Agha, 
one  of  our  chief  merchants,  has  taken  his  daughter 
Anna  home,  because  her  husband  has  become  a 
Prote.  He  will  not  let  her  bring  her  babe  with 
her,  and  people  say  the  young  baby  will  die." 

"  Poor  Anna  !"  said  Nazloo  ;  "  I  pity  her ;  she 
must  feel  very  sad.  I  wonder  if  she  agrees  with 
her  husband ;  do  you  know,  Markareed 


110 IV  WE  REACHED  THE  WOMEN.  35 

"  Their  mother  says  she  cries  most  of  the  time, 
when  her  father  is  not  in  the  house,  and  wishes  to 
go  back  to  her  husband.  She  says  he  is  kinder  to 
her  than  he  ever  was  before,  and  she  thinks  he  is  a 
better  man  than  he  was  when  he  went  to  hear  the 
priest  in  the  old  church.  I  think  you  are  mistaken 
about  these  people,  Mariam,  and  if  you  only  knew 
them  better,  you  would  not  talk  about  them  as  you 
do.  Besides  it  is  not  polite  to  talk  so  in  the  house 
of  the  hanum." 

"  Soos  getseer,  (hold  your  tongue,)  Markareed  ; 
what  do  you  know }  Have  you  too  become  a  Prote  ? 
The  hanum  does  not  understand  what  we  are  say 
ing.  Oder  meg  mun  ay,"  (She  is  a  foreigner.) 

"  She  does  understand,  Mariam.  Did  you  not 
see  the  smile  on  her  face  when  you  were  talking } 
Then,  as  for  Garabed  Agha,  I  think  he  has  no  right 
to  take  Anna  away  from  her  husband.  Kevork  is 
a  very  kind  man,  and  I  know  that  Anna  loves  him 
a  great  deal  better  than  she  did  before  he  became  a 
Protestant.  She  told  me  she  did.  She  says  he  was 
very  unkind  to  her  before,  and  seemed  to  think  she 
was  only  a  servant  to  wait  on  him.  Now  he  says  to 
her,  *  Come,  Anna,  sit  down  and  listen  while  I  read 
to  you  out  of  this  new  book.'  Even  his  old  mother 
does  not  oppose  this,  but  will  say  to  her,  '  Yes,  come. 


36  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


Annig,  (little  Anna,)  when  Kevork  calls  you.'  This 
is  the  way  these  missionaries  do,  Mariam,  and  I  am 
glad  they  have  come  to  this  land.  I  have  a  primer, 
and  my  husband  says  he  will  get  me  a  Testament 
just  as  soon  as  I  get  through  with  my  primer." 

"Another  Protel"  says  Mariam,  with  a  very  ex- 
pressive shrug  of  the  left  shoulder  ;  I  am  glad  Gar- 
abed  Agha  has  more  sense  than  your  husband  has. 
If  he  had  n't,  our  church  would  be  destroyed  by 
these  foreigners." 

"  Garabed  Agha  will  be  glad  enough  to  let 
Anna  go  back,  when  he  finds  that  Kevork  will  not 
come  to  his  terms  ;  as  he  will  not,  for  I  hear  they 
have  bought  a  goat,  and  the  baby  is  thriving  on  her 
milk.  The  missionaries  told  him  to  be  patient, 
and  pray  over  it,  and  God  would  send  him  back  his 
wife  in  a  short  time.  You  well  know,  Mariam,  that 
Garabed  Agha  would  not  long  be  willing  to  support 
Anna.  He  loves  money  too  well  for  that,  and  it 
would  be  a  greater  disgrace  for  him  to  keep  her 
than  to  let  her  go  back  to  her  husband.  I  do  not 
think  he  would  dare  to  give  her  to  another  man, 
though  he  says  he  will  do  so,  and  the  priest  says 
he  will  find  one  who  will  take  her,  as  her  husband 
has  become  an  apostate." 

But  just  here  our  Garabed  came  in  with  the 


HOW  WE  REACHED  THE  WOMEN.  37 


sherbet,  and  this  put  an  end  to  the  conversation 
between  our  guests.  One  of  the  Httle  glasses  is 
taken  by  each  of  the  women  except  Mariam,  who 
has  been  so  hard  on  the  Protestants.  Garabed  in- 
sisted that  she  should  take  a  glass,  but  she  refused. 
Markareed  looked  toward  me,  and  smilingly  said  : 

"  Hanum,  she  is  afraid  to  drink  this,  lest  she 
too  become  a  Prote.  Some  one  told  her  that  if  she 
came  to  see  you,  you  would  give  her  sherbet,  with 
something  in  it  that  would  turn  her  head,  and  ever 
after  she  would  believe  just  as  you  do  ;  so  she  is 
determined  not  to  drink  any,  though  she  knows  it 
is  very  impolite  in  her  not  to." 

You  see  by  this  story,  little  folks,  how  we  be- 
came acquainted  with  the  Armenian  women,  and  I 
think  you  begin  to  understand  what  ignorant  and 
strange  people  they  were. 


38  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA, 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  BEST  IV A  V  TO  HELP  THEM. 

Susie  is  not  content  unless  she  understands 
everything  as  she  goes  along.  And  this  is  well, 
for  by  her  questions  she  leads  me  on  to  say  just 
what  I  want  most  to  impress  on  her  mind.  The 
next  talk  we  had  she  began  where  we  left  off,  and 
the  first  question  she  asked  was,  "  Mamma,  what  is 
sherbet  ?    It  is  n't  wine,*  is  it  ?" 

I  am  glad  she  asked  me  this,  for  perhaps  some 
other  little  girl  might  think  that  we  treated  our  visi- 
tors to  wine  in  that  country.  But  no  ;  sherbet  is  sim- 
ply a  sweet  drink.  One  kind,  which  is  white,  or  of  a 
pale  green  tinge,  is  made  from  a  flower  that  grows 
there.  It  is  considered  very  cooling  and  refreshing 
in  summer ;  but  I  do  not  like  it  ;  it  tastes  some- 
thing like  cold  tea.  They  have  another  kind  which 
I  think  very  pleasant  to  the  taste.  This  is  made  of 
several  kinds  of  herbs  and  flowers  steeped  together 
over  a  slow  fire.  They  add  cinnamon  to  it,  and 
color  it  a  beautiful  ruby  tinge,  by  a  species  of  small 
berry  which  they  put  in  just  before  taking  it  from 
the  fire.    Sugar  is  added  after  the  liquid  is  strained, 


THE  BEST  WA  Y  TO  HELP  THEM.  39 


and  the  whole  becomes  a  thick  syrup,  and  is  some- 
times made  into  cakes,  which  are  put  into  water 
when  needed,  and  make  a  very  nice,  sweet  drink. 
This  kind  is  too  expensive  for  the  poor  people,  and 
is  only  found  among  the  wealthier  classes.  Many 
of  the  people  use  a  sour  cherry,  something  like  our 
cranberry,  which  makes  a  very  pleasant  drink ; 
and  some  use  only  sugar  and  water.  I  have  even 
been  where  they  used  molasses,  or  honey,  in  water. 

And  this  starts  Susie  again  on  her  questions : 
"  Mamma,  do  they  make  molasses  in  Armenia 
And  what  do  they  make  it  of }  Have  they  sugar- 
cane there,  or  maple-trees  as  we  have  V  And  she 
was  much  amused  when  I  told  her  the  Armenians 
made  their  molasses  from  mulberries  and  grapes. 

The  white  mulberry  is  very  abundant  there, 
and  is  much  used.  It  is  the  first  fruit  that  ripens, 
and  the  people  relish  the  sweet  fruit  after  the  long 
fast  in  the  spring,  when  they  have  little  variety  in 
their  food.  When  they  are  ripe  the  women  bring  out 
large  sheets  and  spread  them  under  the  trees,  which 
are  then,  shaken,  and  the  ripe  fruit  is  easily  gath- 
ered. The  berries  are  put  into  a  large  copper  boil- 
er, a  fire  is  kindled  near  the  place,  and  the  boiler  is 
supported  by  large  stones  on  each  side  of  the  fire. 
The  fruit  is  cooked  for  several  hours,  and  strained 


40  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

through  a  cotton  bag,  till  all  the  juice  is  pressed 
out.  This  is  put  into  shallow  copper  vessels,  whit- 
ened with  tin,  and  placed  on  the  flat  roofs  of  the 
houses,  where  it  remains  for  days  to  evaporate  in 
the  sun.  Then  it  is  put  into  a  narrow-necked 
earthen  vessel,  the  mouth  of  which  is  covered  with 
wet  leather,  and  the  molasses  is  ready.  Bread-and- 
molasses  is  the  morning  meal  of  many  a  poor  Ar- 
menian family.  They  also  prepare  a  sort  of  sweet- 
meat of  this  molasses.  They  stir  starch  or  fine 
flour  into  the  fresh  syrup,  boil  it  till  it  becomes  a 
paste,  and  then  spread  it  on  their  cloth,  and  dry 
it  for  winter.  Sometimes  they  put  nuts  upon  it 
while  it  is  fresh,  or  when  it  is  partly  dry,  rolling  up 
the  nuts,  strung  on  strings,  in  these  thin  layers. 
It  looks  very  much  like  a  sausage  when  rolled  so. 
This  kind  of  sweet  paste  is  often  brought  in  with 
the  sherbet  and  offered  to  guests.  I  often  brought 
home  my  pockets  full  of  this  bastic.  I  used  to  say 
to  the  kind-hearted  villagers,  "I  cannot  take  so 
much  ;  my  pockets  are  full  now."  "  Then  3'ou  must 
bring  a  bag  next  time,  as  our  priests  do,"  they 
would  say.  If  I  refused  it  they  would  feel  hurt, 
and  would  say,  "  Why,  hanum  I  We  have  done  you 
no  honor  in  our  house.  You  ate  but  little,  and  now 
will  not  take  what  we  offer  you."    It  was  much 


THE  BEST  WA  Y  TO  HELP  THEM.  41 


better  to  take  it,  and  then  I  had  always  something 
to  give  to  the  needy.  So  you  see  I  had  a  double 
pleasure,  that  of  receiving  and  that  of  giving. 

There  was  one  little  girl  who  used  to  come  to 
our  house  every  Saturday  to  sweep  the  court.  Su- 
sie remembers  her  very  well,  and  that  often  she 
would  fill  the  child's  apron  with  these  sweetmeats, 
and  tell  her  to  take  them  home  to  her  little  broth- 
ers and  sisters.  She  was  very  poor.  '  Her  mother  had 
been  sick  a  long  time,  and  Ater  had  to  work  hard, 
and  often  go  hungry.  They  were  not  Protestants, 
but  Ater  wished  to  go  to  school  and  learn  to  read. 
She  had  no  dress  suitable  to  wear,  so  I  told  her  to 
come  and  sweep  the  court,  and  earn  a  dress. 

We  might  have  given  her  a  dress,  but  it  was 
much  better  to  give  her  work,  and  let  her  feel  that 
she  had  earned  it.  When  she  had  gotten  this,  I 
gave  her  a  sacque  and  shoes,  but  if  I  had  given  her 
all  she  would  not  have  prized  them  half  as  much. 
It  is  much  better  to  help  people  to  help  themselves. 
They  appreciate  what  they  get  far  more  if  it  has 
cost  them  something. 

This  method  has  been  very  successful  in  our 
missionary  work  among  the  Armenians.  We  teach 
them  that  God  helps  those  who  help  themselves. 
When  I  went  there,  I  wrote  home  to  my  friends 

Paii^'htcrs  of  Armeuia.  6 


42  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


that  the  poor  people  needed  first  to  be  clothed.  I 
saw  so  many  shivering  in  the  cold,  their  feet  looked 
so  red,  their  shoes  worn  and  their  garments  thin, 
that  I  longed  for  shiploads  of  warm  clothing  to  give 
them.  But  I  soon  learned  that  if  I  would  be  a  real 
benefactor,  I  must  devise  some  way  to  help  them 
help  themselves,  and  not  depend  on  foreign  aid. 

Perhaps  some  of  you  think  that  we  could  have 
reached  their  souls  quicker  if  we  had  cared  for  the 
bodies.  And  you  feel,  as  Susie  does,  that  it  would 
be  nice  in  your  little  mission  bands  to  make  gar- 
ments for  these  poor  people  and  children,  rather 
than  make  mats  and  tidies  and  iron-holders  to  sell 
at  a  fair.  Susie  said  it  would  be  "real  fun"  to 
make  aprons  and  dresses  for  the  bright-eyed  hea- 
then children.  She  even  fancied  she  could  have  one 
little  girl  all  to  herself,  and  make  her  clothing  for 
her.  She  said  she  believed  it  would  stir  up  a  mis- 
sionary spirit  in  her,  and  she  would  want  to  go  out 
and  see  how  the  little  girl  looked  in  the  things. 
But  such  a  plan  as  this  would  not  work  well. 

In  the  first  place  I  am  not  sure  that  the  people 
in  this  country  would  send  us  the  goods  if  we  asked 
for  them.  And  they  would  soon  grow  weary  of  it  if 
they  began.  No,  we  go  out  to  carry  the  blessed 
gospel  to  these  poor  people.    We  feel  very  sorry 


THE  BEST  WA  Y  TO  HELP  THEM.  43 


for  them  in  all  their  needs  ;  but  it  is  better  to  show 
them  how  the  Bible  will  lift  them  above  want ;  not 
one  or  two  of  them,  but  the  whole  people,  and  it 
will  also  teach  them  to  be  kind  to  those  around 
them  who  are  more  needy  than  they.  I  do  not 
think  we  should  have  had  so  much  influence  over 
them,  if  we  had  supplied  their  temporal  wants.  We 
told  them  about  the  bread  and  water  of  life,  and 
the  robe  of  Christ's  righteousness,  that  will  never 
grow  old. 

We  did  not  even  give  them  the  Bible.  We 
told  them  they  must  pay  something  for  it.  If  any 
were  very  poor,  perhaps  we  would  help  them  ;  but 
it  was  worth  too  much  to  them  to  cost  them  no 
effort  to  get  it.  Many  a  mother  gave  her  jewelry, 
often  only  silver  or  copper,  to  get  a  Testament  for 
her  little  girl.  Then  when  she  took  it  home,  she 
would  not  give  it  to  the  baby  to  play  with,  "for  she 
had  paid  for  it."  No,  she  would  put  a  cover  o.n  it, 
and  charge  her  little  girl  to  use  it  with  care,  and 
not  soil  its  clean  pages. 

A  poor  girl  came  to  our  seminary  from  a  city 
three  days'  journey  from  Harpoot.  Her  father  had 
hired  an  animal  for  the  journey,  and  her  mother 
had  provided  the  scanty  wardrobe,  and  a  bed  for 
her  daughter.    But  she  had  no  Bible,  and  what 


44  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


should  she  do  ?  Should  she  come  and  ask  us  for 
the  book  ?  She  must  have  it.  She  learns  that  she 
can  have  it  for  half-price.  She  might  say  to  her 
father  as  he  is  about  to  leave,  "  Can  you  not  give 
me  the  money  for  a  Bible  But  that  would  not 
do,  for  she  knows  he  has  done  all  he  can.  So  she 
takes  out  her  earrings,  two  little  gold  coins,  and 
hastens  to  the  Bible  Depository,  and  comes  back 
with  a  shining  face,  with  God's  book  in  her  hands, 
her  own  precious  Bible.  Would  she  have  valued  it 
so  much  if  it  had  cost  her  nothing. 

Do  you  say,  "  This  was  hard  for  the  young  girl ; 
why  did  you  ngt  give  her  one Ah,  this  was  a 
step  forward  in  the  right  direction.  The  first  step 
was  her  determination  to  come  to  school,  the  sec- 
ond her  self-denial  to  procure  her  Bible,  and  now 
she  was  soon  prepared  for  the  third,  which  was 
giving  her  heart  to  Jesus.  Now  she  was  in  a  fair 
way  to  prepare  herself  for  usefulness  and  happi- 
ness. 

But  now  that  I  have  said  this,  I  do  not  wish  to 
discourage"  any  of  the  young  people  in  America 
from  working  in  their  little  mission  circles  for  the 
heathen.  There  are  many  ways  in  which  you  can 
help  us.  This  girl  has  come  to  the  school  with 
her  clothes  and  her  books,  but  she  cannot  do  more. 


THE  BEST  IVA  Y  TO  HELP  THEM.  45 

Who  will  pay  the  expenses  of  the  schoolhouse  for 
her  ?  She  must  be  taught ;  who  will  teach  her  ? 
She  must  be  fed ;  who  will  feed  her  ?  Her  father 
has  done  all  he  can.  If  not,  we  should  say  to  him, 
"  Send  the  money  for  her  board  and  tuition  also." 
Then  who  gave  the  Bible  at  half-price }  Not  the 
missionary  who  has  only  enough  for  his  own  wants, 
and  often  needs  the  help  of  friends  to  pay  the  ex- 
penses of  his  own  children  at  school  in  the  home- 
land. Your  mission  circles,  and  the  friends  who 
would  be  so  willing  to  fill  the  boxes  with  garments 
for  the  bodies  of  these  poor  people,  must  help  pay 
these  bills  which  they  cannot.  So  do  all  you  can, 
little  girls,  dear  young  ladies ;  there  never  was 
greater  need  than  now.  But  instead  of  garments 
which  will  w^ear  out,  send  them  the  Bible,  and  food 
for  the  mind  and  soul.  Their  degradation  and 
poverty  will,  flee  before  this  as  the  mists  of  the 
morning  disappear  before  the  bright  sun.  If  you 
raise  thirty  dollars,  you  can  keep  a  girl  in  the  sem- 
inary a  whole  year ;  or,  for  a  little  more,  you  can 
sustain  a  school  a  year  in  some  village,  where  one 
of  the  girls  educated  in  the  seminary  may  go,  to 
teach  forty  or  fifty  children  to  read  the  Bible. 

Then  there  are  Bible-readers,  as  we  call  them, 
who  go  from  house  to  house  to  teach  the  women  to 


46  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


read.  They  cannot  do  this  unless  they  are  paid  for 
it,  any  more  than  teachers  in  the  schools.  They 
must  eat  and  drink  as  we  do,  and  I  assure  you  they 
earn  the  money  we  give  them.  Some  of  them  are 
real  missionaries,  and  endure  great  self-denial  to  do 
this  work. 

I  wish  I  could  take  your  mission  circle  into  the 
village  where  one  of  our  girls  is  teaching,  and  show 
you  her  work.  I  feel  quite  sure  you  would  think  it 
paid  for  you  to  go  once  in  two  weeks  to  the  circle, 
to  work  on  mats,  tidies,  or  even  iron-holders,  if  in 
this  way  you  can  get  money  to  support  Lizzie, 
while  she  is  trying  to  do  good  in  these  dark 
homes.  I  think  you  would  say,  "  We  must  have 
more  girls  come  to  our  circle,  so  that  we  can  raise 
money  enough  for  a  school  in  more  than  this  one 
village."  And  there  are  hundreds  of  such  villages 
where  we  can  work. 

So  work  away,  all  of  you  who  can.  You  are 
just  as  much  needed  as  the  missionaries  them- 
selves. They  are  only  helpers ;  so  are  you  You 
have  perhaps  never  thought  you  could  do  so  much. 
Hereafter  then  you  will  look  upon  your  work  at 
home  very  differently,  I  think.  You  see  it  is  not 
to  dress  up  these  poor  children,  as  you  would  your 
dolls,  but  to  prepare  them  to  be  noble  men  and 


THE  BEST  WA  Y  TO  HELP  THEM.  47 


women,  and  true  Christians.  If  you  can  support  a 
band  of  teachers  to  open  schools  in  these  dark  and 
degraded  villages,  from  them  will  go  out  thousands, 
who  in  their  turn  will  educate  others,  and  so  the 
work  will  go  on,  until  the  whole  world  shall  become 
like  "  the  garden  of  the  Lord." 

Jesus  said  that  not  even  a  cup  of  cold  water 
given  in  his  name,  from  love  to  him,  should  go  un- 
rewarded. The  smallest  child  in  any  missionary 
circle  can  give  and  do  something,  and  Jesus,  the 
Great  Treasurer,  will  keep  the  account.  It  will  all 
be  safely  kept  in  Heaven's  Savings  Bank,  and  when 
our  work  is  all  done,  and  we  go  to  live  with  Jesus  in 
his  beautiful  home  in  heaven,  we  shall  find  it  all 
there,  with  a  great  deal  of  interest  added. 


48  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


CHAPTER  V. 
THE  VHLAGE-SCHOOL  TEACHER. 

It  would  give  me  great  pleasure  if  I  could  in- 
troduce Susie,  and  all  the  dear  young  friends  of  the 
mission  bands  in  the  home  land,  to  Yeghesa,  or 
Lizzie,  and  her  school  in  her  native  village.  We 
would  go  first  to  the  place  where  we  found  her; 
we  cannot  honor  it  with  the  name  of  home,  for  we 
find  nothing  there  that  seems  like  home,  excepting 
the  Bible  which  she  has  already  obtained. 

We  enter  the  low,  narrow  door  by  stooping. 
We  think  this  cannot  be  the  place  where  a  family 
lives,  but  must  be  an  outside  room  where  they  are 
cooking ;  for,  it  being  only  ten  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing, or  the  fourth  hour,  as  they  reckon,  the  smoke 
from  their  breakfast  has  not  all  escaped  through 
the  hole  in  the  roof,  and  the  little  window,  a  foot 
square  in  the  side.  Lizzie's  mother  rises  to  greet 
us,  then  places  a  cushion  near  the  fireplace  for 
us  to  sit  upon.  Chairs,  sofas,  and  divans  are  un- 
known in  these  village  houses.  It  is  a  cold  morn- 
ing, and  we  are  invited  to  put  our  feet  into  the  fire- 
place and  warm  them.    I  say  into,  for  the  fireplace 


THE  VILLAGE-SCHOOL  TEACHER.  49 


looks  much  like  a  small  well.  It  is  a  hole  in  the 
earth,  three  or  four  feet  deep,  and  stoned  about  the 
sides,  much  as  our  farmers  make  stone  walls  around 
their  fields.  In  the  morning  grass  and  brush  are 
brought,  and  a  fire  kindled,  upon  which  are  placed 
cakes  of  prepared  wood,  or  what  we  call  village 
peat. 

Those  tired  unhappy-looking  women,  with  great 
baskets  on  their  shoulders,  whom  we  met  as  we 
rode  into  the  village,  were  going  after  a  supply 
of  this  fuel.  The  baskets  they  carried  were  full 
of  manure  which  they  take  to  a  hole  outside 
the  village.  They  pour  in  water,  add  a  little 
chopped  straw  or  grass,  and  then  a  number  of  the 
women — brides  they  are  called  because  they  are 
married — get  in  and  trample  it  with  their  bare  feet 
until  it  is  well  mixed.  Then  with  their  hands  they 
make  it  into  flat  cakes,  and  put  it  in  a  sunny  place 
to  dry.  When  it  is  thoroughly  dried  they  pack  it  in 
their  baskets  to  take  home.  This  way  of  preparing 
fuel  is  probably  as  old  as  Bible  times. 

The  village  houses  have  but  one  room,  which 
serves  as  parlor,  kitchen,  bedroom,  and  storeroom; 
and  if  they  are  rich  enough  to  own  cattle,  as  stable 
also.  But  Lizzie's  mother  is  too  poor  for  cattle, 
and  her  parlor  had  little  in  it  except  smoke.  The 

Dauglitci's  of  Annenla.  '1 


50  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


walls  are  black  and  shiny,  like  the  inside  of  a  chim- 
ney that  has  been  used  for  years. 

When  I  first  went  to  see  this  family  the  mother 
had  been  weeping.  She  held  the  Bible  in  her 
hand.  We  had  a  Bible  woman  in  this  village,  and 
she  had  visited  this  poor  woman,  and  had  taught 
her  to  read.  She  was  in  great  sorrow  at  this  time 
for  her  husband  had  just  died,  and  she  refused  to 
be  comforted.  She  had  no  hope  that  he  had  gone 
to  be  with  the  blessed  Saviour.  She  felt  too  that 
that  she  was  a  stranger  to  that  dear  Jesus  who  died 
upon  the  cross  to  redeem  her.  I  took  the  Bible 
and  read  how  Jesus  had  gone  to  his  Father's  house 
in  the  heavenly  city,  to  prepare  mansions  for  those 
who  love  him  and  keep  his  commandments.  I 
told  her  that  Jesus  said  he  would  come  again,  and 
take  her  to  that  blissful  abode,  and  that  God  would 
be  her  Father,  if  she  would  love  and  serve  him.  She 
cannot  help  her  husband  now,  but  she  can  train  up 
her  three  fatherless  children  to  be  Christians ;  her 
Heavenly  Father  has  given  her  this  great  work  to 
do  for  him. 

My  interest  in  this  poor  woman  made  me  for- 
get the  dark,  gloomy  room  and  the  black  walls. 
Even  the  smoke  ceased  to  trouble  me.  As  we 
talked,  I  became  interested  in  her  daughter  Liz- 


THE  VILLAGE-SCHOOL  TEACHER.  51 


zie.  I  thought  how  useful  she  might  become,  if 
she  could  only  have  the  advantages  of  the  semi- 
nary at  Harpoot.  I  proposed  that  she  should  go 
there,  and  both  mother  and  daughter  were  delighted 
with  the  idea ;  but  how  could  she  ?  She  had  but 
one  dress,  that  which  she  had  on.  It  was  made  of 
a  coarse  blue  cloth,  woven  in  the  rude  looms  of  her 
native  village.  Now  is  the  time  for  us  to  help  her 
help  herself  ;  but  how  shall  we  ck)  it  ? 

I  know  what  you  are  thinking  of,  little  folks. 
You  are  thinking  of  those  boxes  of  ready-made 
clothes  we  were  talking  about  yesterday,  which  the 
mission  bands  ought  to  make  and  send  across  the 
sea.  But  let  us  talk  with  this  mother  and  daugh- 
ter first,  and  see  how  much  they  can  do. 

"You  would  like  to  have  Lizzie  go  up  to  Har- 
poot to  school.  You  are  poor,  and  we  will  give  her 
board  and  tuition,  and  perhaps  some  one  will  help 
her  get  the  books  she  will  need ;  but  what  will  she 
do  for  clothing  and  a  bed  t    Can  you  provide  them  V 

"  I  think  I  can,  Hanum.  I  have  enough  blue 
cloth  to  make  her  a  dress,  and  red  enough  to  make 
an  apron  to  trim  it.  I  will  wash  the  one  she  has 
on,  and  mend  it  nicely,  and  she  can  wear  it  to  work 
in."  She  understood  that  the  girls  at  the  school 
do  their  own  work. 


52  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


Then  I  have  a  new  handkerchief,  or  veil/'  she 
continued,  "which  was  given  to  me,  which  will  do 
for  her  head.  She  can  take  my  stockings,  and  I 
will  wear  her  father's.  One  of  my  neighbors  has 
a  little  money,  which  my  husband  lent  him,  and 
this  will  get  her  some  shoes,  and  help  about  her 
books.  The  man  said  he  would  give  it  to  me  as 
soon  as  he  had  sold  his  cotton,  and  I  hear  he  has 
gone  to  the  city  with  a  load  to-day. 

I  will  take  her  father's  bed  and  quilt  down  to 
the  fountain  and  wash  them,  and  make  them  over, 
and  they  will  be  as  good  as  new.  Then  I  will  take 
the  towels  that  were  given  to  me  when  I  was  a 
bride,  and  Lizzie  will  be  ready  in  a  few  days  to  go 
to  school.  I  think  my  neighbor  Kevork  will  take 
her  up  to  the  city,  as  he  goes  quite  often." 

Now  was  n't  that  much  better  than  to  have  giv- 
en her  a  complete  outfit } 

In  due  time  the  village-girl  appeared  in  the 
court  of  the  mission-house.  Do  not  laugh  though 
she  is  mounted  on  a  mule  astride  her  bed  and  bag- 
gage. Some  girls  have  to  take  their  baggage  on 
their  shoulders  and  walk  to  school. 

Miss  Pond,  the  young  lady  who  has  come  out 
from  America  to  teach  the  girls,  receives  Lizzie 
very  kindly,  and  inquires  for  her  mother  in  such  a 


THE  VILLAGE-SCHOOL  TEACHER.  53 

way  as  to  cheer  the  stranger  girl's  heart.  She  feels 
sure  from  that  moment,  that  she  shall  love  this 
teacher,  who  has  left  her  friends  and  come  to  a  far- 
off  land  to  teach  such  a  poor  girl  as  she  is. 

The  bell  rings,  and  the  pupils  come  flocking  in- 
to the  school.  The  city  girls  give  her  a  kindly 
glance.  Her  dress  is  not  like  theirs,  but  it  is  new, 
and  a  goodly  number  from  the  villages  are  dressed 
just  as  she  is.  She  is  rough-looking,  and  awkward, 
and  she  feels  it. 

She  reads  her  verse  from  the  Testament  with  a 
trembling  voice,  and  in  the  opening  prayer  the 
teacher  remembers  the  new  pupil,  and  asks  God  to 
bless  and  help  her  every  day  while  in  the  school,  and 
make  her  useful  when  she  goes  back  to  the  village 
among  her  own  people.  After  devotions,  JNIiss  West 
assigns  her  lessons,  and  she  begins  her  school-life. 

Seven  happy  months  pass  away,  and  we  enter 
the  schoolroom  again.  It  has  been  swept  with 
more  than  usual  care,  and  some  pieces  of  carpet 
spread  on  one  side.  The  desks  have  been  removed, 
and  chairs  brought  in  for  expected  guests.  The 
teachers  at  their  desks  are  on  the  south  side  of  the 
room,  and  all  the  schoolgirls,  dressed  in  their  best, 
are  seated  on  the  floor  at  their  left  hand.  The 
women  are  coming  in  aud  quietly  taking  their  seats 


54  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

on  the  carpets,  and  the  invited  guests,  friends  of 
the  pupils,  occupy  the  chairs.  It  is  a  select  com- 
pany, for  it  is  a  girls'  school,  and  here  in  Turkey, 
at  this  time,  it  will  not  do  to  admit  any  gentlemen 
but  the  fathers  of  the  girls,  to  see  their  uncovered 
faces.    Even  their  brothers  are  excluded. 

And  now  we  will  look  for  Lizzie.  Can  it  be 
possible  that  nice-looking  girl  in  the  neat  pink  cal- 
ico dress  is  she }  It  looks  like  her  face,  but  she 
has  grown  whiter  and  handsomer.  The  little  black 
handkerchief  is  tied  tastefully  over  her  nicely- 
braided  hair,  and  her  purple  merino  jacket  is  very 
becoming  to  her.  What  have  the  teachers  done  to 
her you  will  ask  ;  or  perhaps  you  will  conclude 
that  some  one  has  sent  her  a  box  at  last. 

But  no,  she  has  had  no  help  from  others.  Her 
mother  worked  in  the  fields  to  get  this  new  dress 
and  jacket  for  her  daughter,  that  she  might  look 
more  like  the  other  girls.  We  are  glad  she  has 
them,  but  it  is  much  better  that  her  friends  should 
get  them,  than  that  they  should  be  given  to  her 
by  others.  She  has  been  an  earnest  scholar,  has 
studied  hard ;  and  better  than  all,  we  think  she  has 
truly  become  a  follower  of  the  Lord  Jesus.  This 
new  love  in  her  heart,  with  the  clean  rooms  and 
good  food  up  here  at  the  school,  and  her  new 


THE  VILLAGE-SCHOOL  TEACHER.  55 


dress,  account  for  the  great  change  in  her  appear- 
ance. 

And  now  examination  is  over,  and  vacation  be- 
gins. Lizzie  is  going  to  teach  school  in  her  native 
village,  and  board  at  home.  What !  in  that  dark, 
smoky  room,  all  this  long  vacation,  with  that  dirty- 
looking  mother  and  brother  and  sister  t  Yes  :  We 
shall  give  her  a  small  sum,  from  one  to  two  dollars 
a  month,  at  the  most,  and  in  this  way  she  can  help 
herself,  and  at  the  same  time  help  us  to  elevate  the 
little  girls  in  that  village. 

Her  schoolroom  is  very  uninviting.  She  has 
resumed  her  blue  village  dress,  and  finds  it  hard  to 
keep  herself  looking  tidy,  but  she  does,  and  she 
has  a  great  influence  over  the  little  girls.  They 
look  up  to  her  with  great  respect,  for  she  has  been 
up  to  Harpoot  to  be  taught  by  those  wise  teachers 
wdio  came  from  over  the  sea. 

All  winter  Lizzie  works  faithfully,  and  in  the 
spring  is  found  among  the  happy  "old  scholars" 
who  come  flocking  back  to  the  school,  as  doves  to 
their  windows.  She  came  a  day  or  two  in  advance, 
to  help  make  the  home  cheerful  for  the  new-comers. 
She  wears  the  neat,  pink  dress,  which  has  been 
worn  only  on  great  occasions  during  the  winter. 
Her  face  has  lost  some  of  its  brightness,  and  her 


56  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

hands  look  as  if  water  had  not  been  very  abundant. 
She  has  the  smell  of  smoke  about  her,  the  real  peat 
smell,  which  makes  us  open  our  windows  after  we 
have  had  guests  from  houses  where  that  fuel  is 
used.  But  this  will  soon  pass  away  in  our  pure 
Harpoot  air.  Her  appetite  is  good  after  a  long 
winter,  when  meat  has  seldom  been  seen,  and  the 
diet  extremely  plain.  She  relishes  study  too,  and 
seems  more  in  earnest  than  ever  before.  The  new 
scholars  look  up  to  her  as  a  leader,  and  she  is  care- 
ful to  set  the  best  example  before  them. 

Her  voice  is  heard  in  the  daily  prayer-meeting, 
and  sometimes  you  may  see  her  in  earnest  conver- 
sation with  some  new  scholar,  and  it  is  easy  to  see 
that  she  is  talking  with  them  about  the  dear  Sav- 
iour she  wishes  them  to  love  as  she  does. 

The  three  years  she  designed  to  stay  at  the 
seminary  pass  thus  pleasantly  away,  and  Lizzie  is 
busy  with  a  new  dress  for  graduation.  This  too  is 
of  calico,  and  the  purple  sack  is  to  be  changed  for 
one  of  green.  Her  hair  is  put  back  under  a  black 
silk  net  of  her  own  making ;  the  worms  which  spun 
the  silk,  having,  perhaps,  been  fed  by  her  mother's 
hands.  A  small  crocheted  collar,  fastened  by  a 
bow  of  bright  ribbon,  gives  a  finish  to  her  dress. 

Lizzie  is  by  no  means  the  best  scholar  in  her 


THE  VILLAGE-SCHOOL  TEACHER.  57 

class,  for  one  of  her  classmates  is  beautiful  Az- 
neev,  who  will  read  us  a  composition  on  "  Female 
Responsibility,"  that  would  do  honor  to  any  young- 
lady  in  an  American  school.  And  there  are  others 
who  will  surpass  Lizzie  in  higher  branches,  but  she 
will  do  well  in  all  the  common  studies,  and  no  one 
could  help  being  interested  in  her  examination  in 
the  Bible.  She  will  not  fail  in  this,  but  be  ready 
for  whatever  question  may  be  put  to  her.  The 
deacon  of  the  little  church  in  her  native  village — 
for  a  church  has  been  formed  there,  and  they  have 
begun  to  support  their  pastor — comes  up  to  the 
seminary  at  this  time  to  engage  Lizzie  for  the  girls' 
school. 

We  say,  "  Deacon  Hohannes,  we  cannot  give 
Lizzie  to  you  this  winter." 

■  He  is  much  disturbed  by  this,  and  wishes  to 
know  our  reason.  "  Surely,  hanum,  you  will  not 
put  Lizzie  in  any  other  village !  She  belongs  to 
us.    What  do  you  mean  T 

"We  have  sent  Lizzie  to  you  for  two  years," 
we  answer,  "  and  she  has  spent  the  winters  in  that 
dark,  dirty  hom.e  with  her  mother.  She  has  now 
graduated,  and  is  a  nice,  neat  girl,  and  we  wish  her 
to  keep  herself  so,  and  she  cannot  do  this  in  such 
a  home.    We  will  put  her  where  she  can.  There 

Daii^litt-rs  of  A:tnRnta.  § 


58  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


are  other  places  where  she  can  teach,  and  be  in  a 
pleasant  family,  for  she  is  one  of  our  most  reliable 
girls." 

"Why,  hanum,  we  will  go  home  and  build  a 
room  for  her  in  her  mother's  house,  if  you  will  help 
us  a  very  little.  Give  us  only  five  dollars,  and  we 
will  pay  all  the  other  expenses." 

We  told  him  we  would  give  it  when  the  room 
was  fitted  up,  for  this  was  just  what  we  wished 
them  to  do.  W^e  knew  they  could  not  do  the 
whole.  The  people  of  that  village,  Hoghi,  are 
very  poor,  and  most  of  the  houses  are  like  that  of 
Lizzie's  mother ;  and  the  people  were  doing  all  they 
could  for  their  pastor  and  their  boys'  school. 

They  at  once  went  to  work,  and  soon  had  a  lit- 
tle room  with  two  windows  in  it  ready,  on  the  roof 
of  her  mother's  house.  They  whitened  its  mud- 
walls  with  a  clay-wash,  put  a  reed-carpet  on  the 
floor,  and  came  up  to  the  city  to  buy  a  sheet-iron 
stove  to  put  in  it.  The  first  stoves  in  Harpoot 
were  imported  by  the  missionaries.  Now  the  city 
has  two  rival  manufactories  of  sheet-iron  stoves. 
They  are  yet  unable  to  melt  iron  for  casting. 

We  gladly  gave  the  deacon  the  five  dollars  we 
had  promised,  and  Lizzie  for  their  teacher.  The 
room  and  stove  did  a  great  deal  of  good  in  that  vil- 


THE  VILLAGE-SCHOOL  TEACHER,  59 


lage,  and  now  we  find  other  rooms  quite  as  com- 
fortable. Deacon  Hohannes  has  a  cheerful  sitting- 
room,  with  a  stove  in  it,  and  a  carpet  on  the  floor, 
and  cushions  to  sit  on  at  the  sides  of  the  room,  so 
that  one  can  lean  back  against  the  wall.  His  wife 
and  mother  are  pupils  of  the  earnest  Bible-woman, 
one  of  our  very  best,  a  native  of  the  same  village, 
and  also  educated  in  our  seminary  at  Harpoot ;  and 
Hohannes,  his  son,  is  preparing,  in  the  Harpoot 
Normal  School,  to  be  a  teacher  or  preacher. 

I  think  it  will  pay  for  the  little  girls  and  young 
ladies  in  America  to  educate  teachers  like  these. 
Susie  is  ready  to  do  her  part,  and  she  has  come  to 
the  conclusion  that  it  is  better  for  them  to  get  their 
own  clothes,  while  she  and  her  friends  send  money 
for  the  schools.  She  sees  too,  how,  as  these  girls 
are  educated,  they  begin  at  once  to  improve  their 
persons  and  their  homes,  and  to  gather  about  them 
the  comforts  of  civilization. 


6o  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

MARIAM,  THE  HOGHI  BIBLE-WOMAN. 

The  work  of  a  Bible-woman  in  Armenia  is  not 
merely  to  go  from  house  to  house,  to  read  the  Bi- 
ble to  the  women,  and  pray  with  them.  We  have 
found  that,  unless  we  get  the  women  to  help  them- 
selves, they  make  little  or  no  progress.  The  most 
of  the  women  in  the  Harpoot  villages  are  willing 
that  the  clean,  nice-looking  Bible-women  should 
come  in  and  read,  and  even  pray  with  them,  and 
then  some  of  them  would  make  the  sign  of  the 
cross,  and  exclaim,  "  Yes,  God  is  merciful !  Salva- 
tion is  free  !  Blessed  be  the  Lord  !"  We  do  not 
believe  in  the  piety  that  consists  alone  in  pious  ex- 
clamations ;  we  therefore  test  their  zeal  by  setting 
them  at  work.  If  we  can  persuade  them  to  buy  a 
primer  and  begin  their  A,  B,  C's,  we  feel  that  we 
have  gained  an  influence  over  them  that  will  tend 
to  elevate  them,  and  bring  them  out  of  their  pres- 
ent wretchedness  into  the  blessings  of  a  Christian 
civilization.  For  the  primer  is  called  "  the  key  to 
unlock  the  Bible,"  and  this  opens  the  way  to  Chris- 


THE  HO  GHI  BIBLE-  WOMAN.  6 1 


tian  civilization.  We  never  get  a  woman  through 
the  primer,  who  is  not  anxious  to  have  a  Testa- 
ment. Indeed,  this  is  the  strong  inducement  we 
hold  out  to  her,  when,  with  great  difficulty,  she 
spells  out  the  hard  words  in  her  primer.  Many  a 
woman  falters,  and  seems  ready  to  give  up  before 
she  gets  through  the  first  few  pages  of  her  lesson- 
book,  and  then  we  turn  over  a  few  leaves  to  some 
simple  passage  of  Scripture,  and  let  her  read  it 
with  our  help,  and  assure  her  if  she  patiently  goes 
on,  she  will  soon  be  reading  God's  book. 

The  Bible-woman  has  to  give  this  lesson,  ex- 
plain it  to  her,  and  then,  kneeling  with  her,  ask 
God  to  help  her  understand  it.  If  she  prays  over 
her  lesson,  she  will  learn  it,  even  though  her  home 
be  a  dark  one,  and  she  may  have  to  hold  one  baby 
in  her  arms,  and  pull  the  string  fastened  to  the 
hammock  that  contains  another. 

I  wish  I  could  take  all  the  dear  young  people 
at  home,  and  all  the  Christian  mothers  who  love  to 
have  their  children  work  for  the  heathen,  into  some 
.  of  these  homes,  where  they  have  for  ages  heard  the 
name  of  Christ,  and  believed  that  he  died  for  them, 
and  yet  are  more  cheerless  than  many  a  heathen 
one.  They  have  no  comforts,  but  just  drag  out  a 
miserable  existence.    The  only  thing  that  can  ele- 


62  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


vate  them  is  the  light  and  knowledge  of  the  Bible, 
the  thrice-blessed  Bible. 

Our  Bible-woman  Mariam,  or  Mary,  like  Lizzie, 
came  from  a  dark  and  degraded  home;  but  the  light 
of  God's  word  entered  the  dwelling,  and  her  father, 
Sarkis,  received  it  into  his  heart,  and  became  an 
earnest  follower  of  the  Saviour.  We  soon  saw  the 
fruit  of  this  conversion.  He  had  three  daughters. 
He  was  poor,  but  he  came  up  to  Harpoot,  and 
asked  that  the  eldest  might  be  admitted  to  the 
seminary.  She  was  "  only  a  girl,"  but  the  father 
was  so  changed  by  his  conversion  to  a  living  Chris- 
tianity, that  he  became  really  in  earnest  to  have 
his  daughter  educated. 

The  fact  that  he  wished  this  was  a  good  evi- 
dence of  the  change  in  the  father,  for,  in  Armenia, 
girls  are  looked  upon  almost  with  contempt,  and  it 
is  not  only  thought  unnecessary  to  educate  them, 
but  some  parents  are  strongly  opposed  to  it. 
"  They  can  do  what  is  required  of  them  without  an 
education,"  it  is  said,  "and  will  be  far  more  obedi- 
ent. Their  mothers  and  husbands'  mothers  were 
not  educated;  and  w^hy  should  our  girls  be  1  It 
will  only  lift  them  out  of  their  place,  and  make 
them  impudent  and  lazy." 

But  Sarkis  brought  Mariam  to  the  school,  and 


THE  HOG  HI  BIBLE-  WOMAN.  63 


provided  her  with  clothes  and  books,  and  gave 
about  one-fourth  of  the  money  required  for  other 
expenses.  This  was  making  a  great  effort,  and  he 
seemed  very  happy  in  doing  it.  And  yet,  had  you 
seen  him,  you  would  have  said,  He  looks  more 
like  a  beggar  himself,  than  a  man  who  can  pay 
l^art  of  his  daughter's  expenses  at  school."  It  is 
true  his  garments  were  very  coarse  and  old,  but 
this  very  effort  to  help  his  daughter  tended  to  ele- 
vate himself. 

A  few  months  passed  away,  and  this  father 
came  to  visit  the  daughter  at  school ;  and  this  time 
he  brought  his  wife,  IMariam's  mother,  with  him. 
Each  was  dressed  in  a  new  suit  of  village-blue,  and 
looked  very  neat  and  respectable.  Nor  did  they 
come  empty-handed.  The  daughter  had  her  parcel 
from  home,  and  the  teachers  theirs,  as  a  token  of 
respect.  And  the  missionary  families  were  not 
forgotten.  A  few  eggs,  a  pail  of  sour  milk,  or 
some  cucumbers,  were  given  to  each.  These  little 
"love-tokens,"  as  they  call  them,  were  gratefully 
received.  They  did  not  throw  themselves  on  the 
hospitality  of  teachers  or  missionaries,  but  brought 
their  food  with  them,  and  went  to  the  house  of  an 
acquaintance  in  the  city,  where  they  asked  permis- 
sion for  IMariam  to  spend  the  Sabbath  with  them. 


64  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


We  could  not  ask  them  to  stay  at  the  seminary. 
We  had  neither  room  nor  means  for  the  crowds 
who  would  wish  to  come  if  we  had  offered  to  enter- 
tain them.  Six  days  out  of  each  week  the  friends 
of  our  pupils  could  call  upon  us,  at  any  hour  of  the 
day,  and  we  always  received  them  kindly  and  po- 
litely; but  never  on  the  Sabbath  unless  in  extraor- 
dinary cases.  From  the  first  we  taught  them  that 
the  Sabbath  was  a  holy  day,  and  it  was  better  for 
them  to  go  to  the  place  of  worship,  and  then  read 
and  meditate  in  their  own  homes,  and  with  their 
own  families.  This  training  was  all  the  more  ne- 
cessary, from  the  fact  that  the  Sabbath  had  been 
to  them  little  more  than  a  holiday,  when  they  might 
go  from  house  to  house  to  gossip,  or  have  more 
time  for  a  good  dinner. 

We  did  not  even  allow  them  to  come  to  us  for 
religious  conversation  on  Sunday,  when  we  were  in 
the  city,  except  in  special  cases  ;  but  when  we  were 
in  the  villages  our  room  was  open  to  any  who 
might  come,  and  it  was  a  religious  service  all  day. 
Often  the  only  suitable  place  to  be  found  was  the 
room  used  as  a  chapel,  and  we  were  generally  very 
weary,  when,  late  in  the  evening,  the  last  man  had 
left.  Perhaps  there  are  some  v/ho  will  think  we 
lost  a  great  opportunity  of  doing  good  in  the  city 


THE  HOG  HI  BIBLE-  WOMAN.  65 


by  not  encouraging  their  visits  on  Sunday.  But 
we  did  not  seek  what  would  bring  the  greatest 
crowds  about  us,  but  what  would  be  the  best  way 
of  planting  a  Bible  Christianity  among  the  people. 

They  sometimes  came  to  us  for  tea,  sugar  or 
wood,  and  had  we  given  all  they  wished,  we  should 
soon  have  found  our  own  stores  empty,  and  only 
"a  bread  and  cheese  work,"  as  one  missionary  ex- 
pressed it,  to  show  for  it.  We  did  give  delicacies 
to  the  sick,  and,  according  to  our  ability,  remem- 
bered the  poor  about  us.  And  we  taught  them 
in  many  temporal  things  besides.  We  were  often 
asked  to  cut  and  fit  dresses  and  sacques  like  ours, 
but  seldom  did  it.  We  had  a  more  important  work 
to  do  than  to  be  dressmakers.  Their  style  of  dress 
was  neat,  and,  as  we  thought,  more  becoming  to 
them  than  ours.  We  w^ere  willing  to  give  them 
patterns,  and  show  them  how  to  do  these  things  for 
themselves  ;  our  time  was  thus  saved,  and  our  pa- 
tience spared,  and  the  lesson  they  learned  was  far 
more  lasting  than  it  otherwise  could  have  been. 
Had  we  fitted  and  made  the  dresses,  they  would 
probably  have  found  fault  with  them,  and  demanded 
to  have  them  made  in  some  other  way. 

But  to  return  to  Mariam.  She  finished  her 
seminary  course  of  study,  and  then  took  lessons  in 

Daughters  of  Armenia.  Q 


66 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


another  school,  where  the  Master  intended  she 
should  graduate,  that  she  might  be  still  better  pre- 
pared for  the  work  he  had  for  her  to  do. 

One  bright  morning  pastor  Mardiros  came  in  to 
see  I\Iiss  Pond,  seeming  more  than  usually  thought- 
ful. He  inquired  if  she  thought  Mariam  would 
make  a  good  wife  for  ]\Ir.  Geragos,  who  was  about 
to  graduate  from  the  Theological  Seminary.  This 
was  very  unexpected  to  us  all,  but  after  some  con- 
sultation the  consent  of  the  teachers  and  mission- 
aries was  obtained,  and  a  friend  was  sent  to  ask 
permission  of  the  father  and  mother.  Of  course  it 
made  quite  a  stir  in  that  quiet  village  home,  and 
the  young  man  was  thoroughly  discussed.  He 
was  from  the  city  of  Palu,  and  bore  a  good  name 
there,  and  was  of  more  than  ordinary  talent.  In- 
deed, he  was  so  energetic  that  he  paid  his  own  way 
while  in  the  seminary.  At  times  he  had  been  un- 
der great  mental  depression,  but  it  seemed  more  like 
a  spiritual  than  a  physical  trouble.  The  parents 
gave  consent,  and  it  was  decided  that  the  wedding 
festivities  should  be  at  the  close  of  the  fall  term  of 
school,  and  in  the  girl's  schoolroom,  she  being  the 
first  one  to  be  married  from  the  first  graduating 
class  of  our  new  Female  Seminary. 

But  I  had  almost  forgotten  to  tell  you  about  the 


THE  HOGHI  BIBLE-  WOMAN.  67 


betrothal,  which  occurred  in  this  case  only  a  few 
weeks  before  marriage,  though  sometimes  years  in- 
tervene. 

You  would  have  been  amused  perhaps,  if  you 
had  seen  Geragos  when  he  came  into  the  Bible 
Depository,  and  asked  for  one  of  the  best  red-cov- 
ered, gilt-edged  Bibles,  worth  about  three  dollars. 
He  was  careful  to  see  that  it  was  perfect,  and  the 
ver}'  best  to  be  had.  On  the  blank  leaf  was  writ- 
ten the  betrothal  pledge.  Then  with  some  extra 
attention  to  his  usually  neat  attire,  he  was  ready 
for  the  evening,  that  seemed  a  long  way  off,  al- 
though it  was  now  past  four  o'clock. 

Miss  Pond  had  asked  that  tea  be  served  a  little 
earlier  than  usual,  as  the  betrothal  was  to  be  in  her 
sittingroom.  Some  extra  lamps  made  the  room 
more  cheerful,  the  missionary  families  were  invited 
in.,  and  the  schoolgirls  were  present.  All  things 
were  ready  at  seven,  and  the  pastor  accompanied 
by  Geragos,  made  his  appearance.  Mariam  was 
seated  between  Miss  Pond  and  Kohar,  the  assist- 
ant teacher.  Kohar  with  Mariam  went  forward 
and  made  -the  usual  salutation,  and  all  the  girls 
followed.  When  they  were  again  seated,  pastor 
Mardiros  read  a  portion  of  Scripture  and  prayed, 
and  a  hymn  was  sung.    Then  taking  the  Bible 


68 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


from  the  table  he  went  forward  towards  the  parties 
to  be  betrothed,  and  said  a  few  words  on  the  sa- 
credness  of  the  pledge  they  were  about  to  make  to 
each  other ;  and  handing  the  Bible  to  Mariam,  said, 
By  accepting  this  you  pledge  yourself  to  be  the 
future  wife  of  Geragos."  She  rose  and  modestly 
accepted  the  Bible,  and  Geragos  put  a  ring  on  her 
finger.  After  this  we  sang  once  more,  and  tea  and 
cake  were  served,  after  which  Kohar  and  Mariam, 
rising,  made  the  usual  salutation  and  left  the  room, 
the  schoolgirls  following  in  the  same  manner. 
The  young  bridegroom  elect  was  congratulated,  and 
after  a  few  pleasant  words,  he  left  with  the  pastor. 

Mariam  was  at  that  time  probably  about  seven- 
teen years  of  age,  but  we  had  to  judge  from  her 
appearance.  Armenian  mothers  are  very  apt  to 
forget  the  ages  of  their  children.  We  are  careful 
now  to  furnish  records  in  their  Bibles,  and  to  in- 
struct them  to  have  the  names  of  their  children  and 
the  dates  of  their  birth  written. 

It  is  the  usual  custom  to  have  a  wedding  take 
place  at  the  house  of  the  bridegroom's  father,  but 
in  Mariam's  case  we  took  the  liberty  to  arrange 
otherwise.  The  father  of  Geragos  was  dead,  and 
his  mother  opposed  to  his  being  a  Protestant,  or 
marrying  one.    It  is  usual  too  for  the  bridegroom 


THE  HOGHI  BIBLE-  WOMAN.  69 


to  furnish  the  wedding  dress  ;  but  as  Geragos  had 
no  friends  to  make  it,  pastor  Mardiros'  wife,  He- 
ripsima,  acted  the  part  of  sister  and  made  it  for 
him.  It  was  a  Turkish  silk,  and  the  colors  were 
green,  yellow,  and  red.  It  was  quite  pretty,  and 
with  a  neat  jacket  of  green  broadcloth,  and  a  light 
gauze  head-dress,  Mariam  looked  very  pretty  on 
the  evening  of  the  wedding. 

Some  friends  of  Geragos  and  some  also  of  the 
bride  were  invited.  The  girls  carpeted  the  school- 
room with  rugs,  and  when  well-lighted  it  looked 
very  cheerful.  A  long  table  with  refreshments  was 
so  arranged  between  the  central  pillars  of  the  room 
as  to  give  a  pleasing  effect  to  the  whole. 

All  things  being  ready,  the  bridegroom  and  his 
friends  went  with  lanterns  to  the  house  of  pastor 
Mardiros,  and  escorted  the  bride  and  her  atten- 
dants to  the  schoolroom  with  songs  of  rejoicing. 
The  ceremony  was  nearly  an  hour  long,  and  parts 
of  it  very  original,  but  even  the  most  fastidious 
could  not  say  it  was  incomplete  in  any  respect. 
The  good  things  with  which  the  table  was  spread 
soon  disappeared,  and  the  company  quietly  went  to 
their  homes.  The  pastor  had  invited  the  bride- 
groom to  make  his  house  their  home  for  a  few  days 
till  he  should  take  his  bride  to  see  her  friends 


70  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


in  Hoghi,  before  entering  on  his  work  of  preaching 
in  a  large  village  not  far  from  Harpoot. 

A  few  days  later  the  bride  called  to  bid  us 
good-by  before  leaving  the  city,  and  we  thought  her 
very  lady-like  and  pretty  in  her  new  position.  We 
sent  her  away  with  many  good  wishes  for  her  future, 
little  knowing  how  trying  it  would  be.  The  men- 
tal depression  we  had  known  of  in  his  seminary 
days  increased  upon  Geragos  until  he  became  in- 
sane. Some  thought  it  unsafe  for  Mariam  to  stay 
stay  with  him,  but  she  would  never  leave  him  ex- 
cept to  go  to  a  near  neighbor's  to  rest  for  a  night. 
When  she  was  away  from  him  he  would  call  after 
her,  and  beg  her  not  to  leave  him  with  others.  He 
would  use  the  harshest  language  to  others  but  nev- 
er to  her. 

It  Was  very  touching  to  see  her  leading  him  in 
the  streets  when  he  insisted  on  going  abroad. 
While  others  were  afraid  of,  and  shunned  him,  she 
could  always  quiet  him.  Her  beautiful  little  girl 
of  two  years  was  taken  from  her  to  the  heavenly 
home,  and  Mariam  was  indeed  sorely  afflicted.  Her 
father  took  them  home,  and  after  several  months 
Geragos  was  so  much  better  that  he  sought  work. 
They  were  very  poor,  and  it  was  at  this  time  that 
Mariam  began  her  labors  as  our  Hoghi  Bible-worn- 


THE  HOGHI  BIBLE-WOMAN. 


an.  She  had  a  little  babe  only  a  few  months  old. 
After  the  breakfast  was  over,  and  her  husband  had 
gone  to  his  work,  she  would  take  her  babe  in  her 
arms,  and  go  from  house  to  house  to  give  lessons 
to  the  women.  We  had  regular  written  reports  of 
her  labors,  and  were  pleased  with  the  success  that 
seemed  to  crown  her  efforts. 

Another  day  I  will  tell  my  young  friends  of  a 
visit  I  made  to  Hoghi  to  examine  Mariam's  pupils, 
and  you  will  all  better  understand  her  work. 


72  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

VISIT  TO  HOGHI. 

As  my  young  readers  in  America  cannot  go 
with  me  to  Hoghi  to  see  what  the  Bible-woman  is 
doing  there,  I  have  no  doubt  they  will  be  pleased 
with  an  account  of  the  visit  Susie  and  I  made  in 
that  poor  village;  poor  indeed  and  miserable  in  its 
appearance,  yet  with  many  immortal  souls,  more 
precious  than  gold,  to  be  won  to  Christ. 

Garabed  is  at  the  door,  and  sends  in  word  that 
the  animals  are  ready  for  us. 

"  What  have  you  in  those  great  leather  bags, 
mamma  V  said  Susie.  "  They  are  large  enough 
for  us  to  ride  in ;  but  I  hope  we  are  not  to  go  in 
that  fashion,  are  we 

"  No,  my  dear ;  we  cannot  spare  the  hoorges  for 
5^ou  or  me ;  you  can  ride  on  the  white  donkey,  and 
I  will  take  the  mule.  We  need  the  hoorges  to  put 
our  beds  and  some  cooking  utensils  in  ;  and  we 
will  take  some  food  with  us,  for  we  shall  not  find 
much  that  we  can  eat  in  the  villa^re.  Besides,  the 
people  are  poor,  and  we  do  not  wish  to  be  burden- 
some to  them." 


VISIT  TO  HO  GEL 


73 


"  But  where  are  we  going  to  stay,  mamma  ?" 
"  I  think  the  pastor  will  let  us  have  his  little 
study." 

It  was  winter,  and  we  dressed  ourselves  warmly, 
especially  our  feet,  as  we  were  to  be  two  or  three 
hours  on  the  way,  and  the  winds  from  the  moun- 
tains were  cold  and  chilling.  As  we  rode  into  the 
village,  and  saw  the  people  looking  so  poor  and 
cold,  and  the  houses  like  mud  huts,  Susie  exclaim- 
ed, "  O  mamma,  I  am  so  glad  I  was  not  born  in 
one  of  those  houses,  that  I  am  not  one  of  these  lit- 
tle village-girls  !" 

"  So  am  I,"  I  answered  ;  "  but,  my  child,  it  is  on, 
ly  the  Bible  that  makes  us  to  differ.  These  Arme- 
nians are  just  as  capable  of  a  Christian  civilization 
as  we  are,  and  it  is  to  bring  this  that  we  have  come 
to  them.  It  is  a  blessed  work  God  has  given  to  the 
Christians  in  our  happy  America,  to  send  this  Bible 
to  the  millions  that  have  it  not ;  and  it  is  a  great 
privilege  to  be  permitted  to  bring  it." 

We  did  not  go  out  that  day,  but  permitted  the 
people  to  call  upon  us  ;  and  after  seeing  some  of 
them,  and  planning  with  Mariam  about  the  calls  we 
should  make  in  the  morning,  we  decided  to  go  into 
the  prayer-meeting  which  was  to  be  held  in  the 
chapel  that  evening. 

Daughters  of  Armenia.  10 


74  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


Susie  was  quite  amused  at  the  idea  of  sitting  on 
the  floor  with  the  women,  but  I  told  her  I  always 
did,  only  they  usually  gave  me  a  cushion  to  sit  upon. 

"  I  think  the  pastor  will  have  one  carried  in  for 
us,  Susie;  and  the  people  will  be  delighted  to  see 
us.  I  always  enjoy  a  village  tour.  It  seems  to  me 
more  like  the  work  Jesus  did  when  he  came  down 
from  his  beautiful  home  in  heaven.  It  is  more  like 
that  than  our  work  in  the  city." 

There  is  a  great  difference  between  the  city  and 
the  villages  ;  and  the  villages  differ  very  much  from 
each  other.  In  Hoghi  the  Bible-work  had  then  made 
more  progress  among  the  women,  than  in  any  other, 
and  we  had  reason  to  believe  that  those  wretched 
homes  would  ere  long  be  exchanged  for  light,  cheer- 
ful and  cleanly  abodes.  The  pastor's  cheerful  sit- 
ting-room was  a  model,  and  that  of  Deacon  Hohan- 
nes,  which  we  stepped  across  the  narrow  street  to 
see,  Susie  thought  even  more  pleasant.  Yet  when 
we  first  knew  him  he  lived  in  a  cellar-room.  The 
gospel  has  brought  him  up  into  the  second  story, 
has  brought  him  these  cushions,  the  coarse  carpet, 
that  little  stove,  and,  better  than  all,  a  neat  book- 
case filled  with  books.  Yes,  and  it  is  this  which 
makes  his  pretty  little  wife  look  so  bright  and  intel- 
ligent.    She  is  one  of  Mariam's  best  scholars. 


VISIT  TO  HOG  HI. 


75 


Susie  thought  her  really  beautiful  in  her  clean 
blue  and  red  village  dress,  with  a  neat  bib-apron. 

When  we  returned  to  the  pastor's,  we  found  that 
Garabed  had  made  a  fire,  and  put  up  our  little  bed- 
steads, and  the  room  looked  more  cheerful  and 
homelike  than  before.  Our  beds  are  a  missionary 
invention,  designed  for  comfort  in  going  from  place 
to  place,  as  we  cannot  safely  sleep  on  the  earth-floor. 
They  weigh,  sack  and  all,  only  about  ten  pounds, 
and  can  be  folded  up  like  an  umbrella,  so  as  to  be 
easily  carried. 

We  did  not  pass  a  very  quiet  night,  however,  for 
the  dogs  that  abound  in  that  region,  both  in  city  and 
village,  make  the  night  hideous  with  their  howls. 
They  are  only  street  dogs  and  have  no  owners,  and 
the  villagers  are  accustomed  to  their  noise.  They 
never  kill  them,  unless  they  fear  they  have  become 
mad.  And  there  is  no  sleep  in  the  morning  for  the 
early  cock-crowing.  These  domestic  fowls  are  the 
only  clocks  these  poor  people  have.  We  heed  their 
call  and  rise  promptly,  that  we  may  fold  up  our 
beds  and  put  them  in  the  leather  bags  and  convert 
our  sleeping-room  into  a  parlor  again  ;  and  then  we 
are  ready  for  breakfast. 

Garabed  brought  in  the  breakfast  on  the  pastor's 
round  copper  table,  which  you  would  call  a  tray,  and 


76  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


placed  it  on  a  low  stool.  The  tin  box  was  opened, 
and  with  some  coffee  and  warm  milk  we  made  a 
good  repast.  We  then  repaired  to  the  pastor's  room 
for  prayers.  Susie  thought  it  would  be  pleasanter 
to  be  alone  in  our  own  snug  little  room  for  devo- 
tions, but  I  reminded  her  that  we  did  not  come  here 
to  please  ourselves.  I  knew  that  many  of  the  vil- 
lagers, knowing  we  were  there,  would  esteem  it  a 
privilege  to  come  in.  We  were  then  ready  to  start 
on  our  visiting  with  Mariam,  who  soon  appeared 
with  her  baby  in  her  arms. 

"  I  have  to  take  my  little  one  when  I  go  to  give 
my  lessons,"  she  said,  "  for  I  fear  to  leave  her  with 
her  father,  as  he  is  not  perfectly  sane  now.  I  get 
very  tired,  but  I  love  my  work." 

"  How  many  pupils  have  you  now  .?"  I  asked. 

"  Sixty ;   and  I  give  thirty  lessons  each  day. 
These  keep  me  very  busy.    After  I  have  finished 
my  round,  I  go  to  the  sunset  prayer-moeting,  and 
then  home  to  prepare  our  evening  meal." 
Does  not  Geragos  help  you  .''" 

"  Perhaps  he  will  have  a  fire  in  the  little  stove, 
when  I  get  home,  and  perhaps  not." 
Have  you  a  stove  T 

"  Yes,  hanum  ;  we  have  a  tiny  sheet-iron  stove 
with  a  hole  in  the  top  for  a  kettle,  and  I  can  do  all 


VISIT  TO  HOG  HI. 


77 


my  cooking  there  very  nicely.  We  live  very  sim- 
ply. Sometimes  it  is  cracked  wheat,  with  a  little 
pemmican  (prepared  meat)  added  to  give  it  a  relish, 
or  a  mixed  soup,  which  perhaps  you  would  n't 
like ;  or  pulse,  such  as  the  prophet  Daniel  fared  so 
well  on.  It  does  n't  take  much  time  to  get  our 
food." 

We  did  our  talking  as  we  went  along,  for  I 
wanted  Susie  to  know  how  Mariam  lived  and  work- 
ed.   Soon  we  were  at  Markareed's  house. 

"  We  have  come,  Markareed,"  we  said,  "  to  hear 
you  read,  and  see  what  progress  you  have  made." 

She  timidly  brought  out  her  primer  and  spelled 
out  the  hard  words  ;  the  easy  ones  she  had  learned 
to  pronounce  without  spelling.  We  questioned  her 
a  little,  and  found  that  with  Mariam's  explanation, 
she  had  quite  a  good  idea  of  the  simple  story  she 
read  ;  but  she  said,  "  Hanum,  it  is  very  hard  for  me. 
If  my  husband  did  not  encourage  me,  and  say, '  See 
how  nicely  teacher  Mariam  reads ;  she  had  to  read 
the  primer  first,  as  she  told  you/  I  should  give  up, 
I  know  I  should." 

"  But  are  there  not  hundreds  of  women  in  this 
village,"  we  asked,  "  whose  husbands  treat  them 
like  donkeys,  and  when  they  ask  for  a  primer  tell 
them  to  shut  their  mouths,  for  a  woman  has  no 


78  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


brains  ?  You  ought  to  be  thankful,  Markareed,  that 
your  husband  wants  you  to  learn." 

We  left  her  with  a  song  of  gratitude  in  her 
mouth,  though  her  home  looked  so  wretched  we 
could  not  help  feeling  all  the  while  a  pity  for  her. 
Yet  we  knew  that  all  she  needed  was  encourage- 
ment to  help  herself.  Her  husband,  who  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Hoghi  church,  will  soon  have  as  comfort- 
able a  home  as  Deacon  Hohannes  has.  Markareed 
has  more  intellect  than  the  deacon's  wife,  but  she 
is  not  so  sweet-tempered.  We  pray  that  she  may 
truly  love  Jesus,  as  her  husband  does,  and  then  she 
will  be  more  patient  in  learning  to  read. 

In  the  next  house  we  visited  we  were  obliged  to 
step  carefully,  for  the  passage-way  was  very  dark, 
and  in  some  places,  Mariam  said,  the  floor  was  bro- 
ken. We  at  last  reached  a  large  room  where  men  and 
women  were  at  work  pulling  cotton  out  of  the  pods, 
and  passing  it  through  a  simple  machine  to  free  it 
from  the  seeds.  Our  greeting  here  was  cordial  in- 
deed. "  Good  morning,  hanum;  we  are  glad  to  see  you. 
Welcome  !  a  thousand  times  welcome !  Why  did 
not  the  badvellie  (minister)  come  too.^  Is  this  your 
little  girl }  Sara,  bring  some  better  cushions,  quick ! 
Put  one  under  her  feet.  Sit  down  here,  little  girl. 
Can  you  read  }    What  s  your  name  ?" 


VISIT  TO  HOGHI  79 

Susie,"  I  answered  for  the  child  ;  "  in  your  lan- 
guage it  is  Shushig." 

"  Shushig,  Shushig,  come  here,  karnoog,  (lamb- 
kin,) and  sit  by  me,"  said  a  very  old  lady,  the  grand- 
mother and  great-grandmother  of  this  patriarchal 
family,  whose  name  was  Nana. 

"I  see  your  hands  are  all  busy,"  I  said;  "and 
how  do  you  succeed  in  learning  to  read  ?" 

"  Oh,  they  can  all  read  but  me,"  replied  the 
grandmother.  "  Even  these  bits  of  children  go  to 
Lizzie's  school,  and  come  home  knowing  more  than 
their  old  Nana.  I  wish  it  had  come  in  my  day,  but 
my  old  eyes  can't  see  now.  I  can  only  listen,  but 
I  thank  God  every  day  that  he  has  been  so  kind  to 
my  house.  I  thank  him  for  that  blessed  Bible  that 
Kevork  reads  to  us  every  night  and  morning." 

"  Do  you  think  your  son  is  a  better  man  now 
that  he  reads  the  Bible  T 

"  Oh  yes,  hanum,  we  are  all  better.  Mariam — 
the  Lord  bless  her ! — is  doing  a  good  work  here.  I 
wish  all  my  brides  to  read.  They  will  be  better 
women,  and  do  more  work." 

We  next  entered  a  small  house  with  only  one 
room.  The  mother  met  us  at  the  door,  and  we 
went  in  and  took  our  seats  on  an  old  cushion  be- 
side the  fireplace,  where  the  evening  meal  was  cook- 


8o  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


ing.  "  Will  you  put  your  feet  in  and  warm  them  ?" 
she  said,  as  she  lifted  a  dingy-looking  cloth,  and 
moved  the  earthen  cover  of  the  oven  aside.  A 
little  girl  of  four  years  sat  near  by,  without  shoes 
or  stockings.  Something  moved  in  a  hammock 
swung  across  the  other  corner  of  the  room,  and  the 
woman  reaching  forward,  caught  a  string  suspend- 
ed from  it,  and  swung  it  back  and  forth  until  the 
motion  of  the  bunch  of  rags  within  ceased.  This 
young  mother  has  a  bright,  pretty  face. 

"  Can  she  read     we  inquired. 

"  Bring  your  Bible,  Anna,"  said  Mariam,  "  and 
turn  to  the  fifty-first  of  Isaiah,  and  read." 

She  took  her  book  from  a  box,  and  read  very 
correctly,  asking  several  questions  about  God's  an- 
cient people.  She  seemed  to  love  the  Bible,  and 
we  can  but  hope  that  its  light  will  never  go  out  in 
this  humble  home.  She  asked  us  to  pray  with  her, 
and  we  earnestly  commended  her  to  the  dear  Sav- 
iour, who,  when  he  was  on  earth,  delighted  to  visit 
the  poor  and  needy.  She  followed  us  to  the  door, 
and  urged  us  to  come  again. 


LIGHT  IN  DARK  HOMES. 


8i 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
LIGHT  IN  DARK  HOMES. 

Continuing  our  calls,  we  entered  a  court, 
around  which  were  houses  of  a  better  class  than 
those  we  had  visited.  But  a  sound  as  of  quarrel- 
ling saluted  us  as  we  approached,  and  Mariam,  as- 
cending a  flight  of  steps,  motioned  us  to  stop  till 
she  could  ascertain  the  trouble.  She  soon  returned 
and  asked  us  to  follow. 

"  I  have  a  pupil  here,  hanum,"  she  said,  "  but  I 
fear  she  will  not  be  able  to  take  a  lesson  to-day,  for 
they  have  just  had  a  serious  quarrel.  Loosig  is  a 
young  bride,  and  her  husband  is  the  only  Protes- 
tant in  the  family.  The  uncle  is  enraged  about  it, 
but  Loosig's  father-in-law  stands  up  for  his  son, 
and  says  he  has  a  right  to  be  a  Protestant  if  he 
wishes,  and  Loosig  shall  read  if  her  husband  is 
willing." 

As  we  entered,  Loosig  and  her  father-in-law 
rose  to  greet  us,  and  the  young  woman  brought  us 
a  cushion  ;  but  the  others  only  looked  at  us  with 
dark,  scowling  faces.    They  would  have  told  us  to 

D^u^-liteis  of  Armenia.  1 1 


82  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


leave,  but  they  were  afraid  of  Loosig's  father-in-law, 
and  so  kept  still.  We  hardly  knew  what  to  do,  but 
concluded  to  try  the  efficacy  of  kind  words.  So 
we  said  to  the  eldest  of  these  women, 

"  Sister  Noonig,  as  Mariam  goes  from  house  to 
house  to  give  the  sisters  lessons,  would  you  not 
like  to  learn  V 

In  reply,  Noonig  was  violent  and  abusive.  She 
cursed  "  the  hateful  Protes,"  who  had  come  to  be 
"  dividers  of  families,"  and  derisively  said,  "  Why 
do  n't  you  go  to  the  Turks  }  We  are  Christians,  as 
well  as  you.  We  do  not  wish  the  Prote  Bible ;  it 
only  makes  people  worse." 

*■  It  is  just  like  yours  in  the  church,  Noonig, 
only  it  is  in  a  language  you  can  understand.  If 
you  would  read  this  beautiful  letter  God  has  sent 
you,  you  would  not  curse  us  or  any  one.  This 
book  teaches  us  to  love  even  our  enemies,  and  pray 
for  those  who  are  unkind  to  us.  I  think  you  are 
unhappy  because  you  do  not  read  and  love  this 
book." 

"  I  have  to  work  for  my  living  ;  so  do  my  brides. 
You,  who  live  in  the  city,  have  nothing  to  do ;  you 
keep  servants  to  do  your  work.  Look  at  your  small, 
white  hands.  I  cannot  wear  broadcloth" — pointing 
to  my  waterproof  dress — "my  garments  are  only 


LIGHT  IN  DARK  HOMES.  S3 

cotton.  Then  this  Bible-woman  is  paid  for  giving 
lessons.    Pay  me,  and  I  will  work." 

You  will  readily  perceive  the  ignorance  of  this 
poor  woman.  We  have  to  be  patient  with  such, 
and  though  we  do  not  answer  all  they  say,  we  do 
sometimes  think  it  worth  while  to  make  some  ex- 
planations.   So  I  said : 

"  Noonig,  sister,  we  all  have  to  work  for  our  liv- 
ing. Even  those  you  call  rich  do  more  than  you 
give  them  credit  for.  Come  to  the  city,  and  see 
me  in  my  own  house.  I  have  only  one  woman  to 
help  me,  and  my  house  has  six  rooms  to  be  put  in 
order  each  day.  We  have  three  meals,  wdiile  you 
have  only  two ;  we  do  our  own  sewing,  which  you 
know  is  much  more  than  yours  ;  we  have  many 
guests,  go  out  to  call  and  instruct  the  people,  teach 
in  the  school,  and  our  own  children,  too,  as  we  have 
no  schools  for  them,  hold  prayer-meetings  and 
mothers'  meetings,  visit  the  sick,  and  do  many 
other  things  beside.  Now  your  wants  are  few,  and 
you  have  five-  strong  women  in  this  house.  .Yet 
you  do  not  keep  it  neat,  and  your  own  garments 
are  jdirty — " 

"  W^ho  could  keep  clean  in  such  a  house  as 
this  V  interrupted  Noonig.  I  hear  that  your 
house  is  very  fine,  and  you  do  not  fight  as  we  do." 


84  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


"  The  reason  of  that  is  that  we  read  the  Bible ; 
and  that  is  what  we  want  you  to  do  Good  Chris- 
tian people  from  America  have  opened  a  school  up 
in  Harpoot,  where  your  Bible-woman  was  taught, 
and  now  we  give  her  enough  to  buy  her  bread,  so 
that  she  can  come  here  and  teach  you  and  your  brides. 
Do  you  not  think  she  earns  what  we  give  her?" 

"  Yes  ;  they  say  she  goes  about  with  that  baby 
in  her  arms  from  morning  till  night,  and  her  hus- 
band at  home  crazy.  She  has  grown  pale  and  thin, 
poor  thing.  Everybody  speaks  well  of  her,  and  of 
Geragos  too,  for  he  is  kind." 

If  you  would  learn  to  read,  Noonig,  perhaps 
your  husband  and  brother  would  learn  too,  and  your, 
home  would  be  much  happier." 

"  Would  it  bring  me  a  better  house  .''" 

"  Yes,  I  think  it  would.  If  I  had  not  read  and 
obeyed  this  blessed  book,  I  might  be  just  as  wretch- 
ed as  you  are.  Shall  I  read  you  a  little  out  of  my 
Bible  taking  my  little  Testament  from  my  pock- 
et, I  opened  to  Christ's  Sermon  on  the  Mount, 
and  read  a  few  verses. 

"  Hear  this,"  I  said ;  " '  Blessed  are  the  peace- 
makers, for  they  shall  be  called  the  children  of  God.' 
God  loves  the  peacemakers.  I  think  he  would  like 
to  have  some  here  in  your  house.    Why  are  you 


LIGHT  IN  DARK  HOMES. 


85 


not  a  peacemaker  here  ?"  I  asked,  turning  to  Atam 
(Adam)  the  father-in-law. 

"  These  women  quarrel  all  the  time,"  he  replied, 
"  and  it  needs  my  cane  to  keep  them  straight.  I 
hear  you  do  not  believe  in  beating  the  women,  but 
what  should  we  do  with  them  without  a  cane 
They  are  nothing  but  children.  I  mean  to  defend 
Loosig,  and  let  her  read,  and  we  will  see  if  she  is 
any  better  for  it." 

"But  you  will  need  the  Bible,"  I  said;  "listen 
again  to  the  word,  *  Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart, 
for  they  shall  see  God.' " 

"  See  God,  hanum  !  What  does  that  mean  T 

"  It  means  that  if  we  are  pure,  as  he  is,  we 
shall  live  with  him  in  heaven." 

"  Hanum,  if  you  will  persuade  my  wife  to  learn 
to  read,  I  will  buy  her  all  the  books  she  needs,  and 
when  she  learns  to  read  the  Testament,  I  will  buy 
her  one  with  a  red  cover  and  gilt  edges ;  do  you 
hear  that,  Juhar  T  addressing  a  quiet  little  woman 
who  had  not  ventured  to  open  her  lips. 

"Atam,"  I  said,  "are  you  not  the  eldest  brother 
in  this  house 

"  Yes." 

"  Why,  then,  does  Noonig,  your  younger  broth- 
er's wife,  seem  to  be  the  head  among  the  brides  T 


86  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


Juhar  is  my  second  wife,  and  Noonig  is  older, 
and  much  more  capable.  If  you  can  only  persuade 
her  to  read,  all  the  rest  will  follow ;  but  they  are 
afraid  of  her." 

Yes,  Noonig  has  a  high  position  in  this  house, 
and  a  great  responsibility  is  resting  upon  her.  I 
fear  she  will  be  speechless  when  she  stands  before 
the  Great  Judge,  and  he  asks  why  she  did  not  do 
her  duty  by  her  household. 

But  now  Loosig,  the  timid  young  bride  of  fif- 
teen, came  shyly  along  to  take  her  lesson.  After 
that  was  over  we  united  in  a  short  prayer,  and  even 
Noonig  was- softened,  enough  to  bow  her  head  and 
listen.  She  rose  when  we  left,  and  bade  us  go  in 
peace,  and  we  went  away  feeling  sure  that  her  icy 
haughtiness  would  melt  away  before  the  power  of 
the  gospel,  which  has  already  begun  to  be  felt  in 
that  home.  Loosig  means  little  light,  and  we  trust 
the  true  light  is  to  shine  through  her  and  dispel  the 
darkness.  May  we  not  hope  that  Atam,  whose 
name  means  man,  will  rise  to  a  noble  manhood, 
and  ] whor,  jewel,  will  shine  as  the  stars  for  ever.? 

"I  wish  you  would  go  in  here;  I  have  no  pupil 
here,  but  they  need  light,"  said  Mariam,  as  we 
came  to  another  house. 

We  followed  her,  feeling  somewhat  afraid,  for 


LIGHT  IN  DARK  HOMES. 


8? 


as  the  outer  door  was  opened,  and  we  looked  in, 
we  saw  that  we  had  to  pass  close  by  some  buffalo- 
oxen,  which  seemed  to  fill  the  front  entry,  and  we 
did  not  fancy  being  so  near  these  ugly-looking 
creatures.  The  buffaloes  in  that  land  are  large, 
horned  animals,  considerable  larger,  and  far  less 
docile  than  our  oxen,  and  well  calculated  to  fright- 
en timid  people.  But  with  Mariam  for  our  guide, 
we  went  on  into  the  family  drawingroom.  A  village 
drawingroom  !  and  we  find  many  such  in  Armenia. 

There  was  a  stone  firejDlace  on  one  side  of  the 
apartment,  but  it  was  quite  too  dark  to  see  whether 
those  who  were  sitting  beside  it  were  men  or  wom- 
en. They  did  not  rise  to  greet  us,  at  all  events, 
for  we  were  "  only  women."  We  soon  found,  how- 
ever, from  their  voices,  that  there  were  men  there, 
and  they  were  smoking  their  pipes.  Two  or  three 
women  then  came  forward  and  gave  us  a  seat  at 
the  right  of  the  fireplace,  and  Mariam  said, 

"  I  have  brought  the  hanum  to  see  you." 

"  Paree  yegarl'  (you  come  in  peace,)  all  exclaim- 
ed at  once,  and  the  men  asked,  "  Is  it  the  hanum, 
the  badvellie's  wife  T 

We  heard  the  cattle  munching  their  straw,  and 
when  we  "got  our  eyes,"  as  the  Armenians  say, 
when  going  into  a  dark  place,  we  saw  that  the 


88  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


room  was  only  one  corner  of  the  great  stable,  with 
a  low  railing  around  it.  We  knew  this  family  must 
be  in  quite  comfortable  circumstances,  from  the 
number  of  animals,  and  also  from  the  fact  that  both 
men  and  women  were  persons  of  leisure.  We  saw 
none  of  the  wheels  or  looms  or  cotton  we  had  seen 
in  the  other  houses.  The  women  in  this  house 
have  work  enough  in  taking  care  of  the  cattle,  ma- 
king peat,  and  cooking  the  meals.  The  men  in 
such  a  family  do  the  gossiping,  or  "  spin  street 
yarn,"  which  they  do  literally,  going  about  spin- 
ning a  coarse  yarn  from  a  bunch  of  goat's  hair 
which  they  hold  in  their  hands.  Their  wheel  is  a . 
wooden  spindle,  with  an  iron  point  bent  like  a 
hook,  which  they  whirl  around  with  considerable 
skill,  spinning  as  they  go. 

It  does  not  seem  that  human  beings  can  exist 
in  such  a  room  as  I  have  described;  but  hundreds 
do.  By-and-by  some  of  these  wretched  beings  will 
be  reading,  in  rooms  where  the  light  of  God's  sun 
can  enter.  But  how  could  we  urge  these  women 
in  this  dark  filthy  place  to  read  1  My  heart  was 
sick  and  faint,  and  in  silent  prayer  we  commended 
them  to  the  care  of  our  ever-pitying  heavenly 
Father,  and  as  quickly  as  we  could  we  emerged 
into  the  pure  air. 


LIGHT  IN  DARK  HOMES.  89 

"  Just  step  in  here,"  said  Mariam,  "  and  see  Var- 
teeg.  She  will  be  so  glad  to  see  us,  and  our  call 
will  cheer  her.  We  are  at  the  door,"  and  Mariam 
called,  "Varfeeg,  Varteeg,  open  the  door." 

Varteeg  was  glad  to  see  us,  and  we  found  her 
husband  with  her  at  home.  He  did  not  notice  us 
much,  but  after  talking  for  a  time  with  the  pleasant 
little  wife,  who  was  learning  to  read,  even  though 
she  had  four  small  children,  we  turned  to  him  and 
said, 

"  Hohannes,  are  you  learning  to  read  also  ?" 

"  No,"  he  replied  ;  "  I  have  no  time.  The  rich 
have  nothing  else  to  do,  but  I  have  a  wife  and  four 
small  children  to  work  for.  How  can  one  man  do 
that  and  find  time  to  read  ?  Varteeg  can  read  if 
she  wishes,  but  I  cannot." 

"  But  you  need  the  Bible  as  well  as  your  wife." 

"  How  can  I  learn  when  God  has  not  given  me 
the  time  V 

"  Shall  we  pray,  Hohannes  ?"  I  said.    "  Will 
you  unite  with  me  T 
"  Oh,  surely." 

"  But  first  you  must  understand  what  our  pray- 
er is  to  be.  It  is  this :  *  O  Lord,  I  have  so  many 
children  to  care  for,  and  have  to  work  so  hard  to 
provide  for  them,  that  I  cannot  find  time  to  read 

"    DdUghtere  of  Armenia.  I  2 


90  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


the  Bible.  It  takes  all  my  time  to  prepare  this 
cotton  for  the  market.  Please  next  year  to  take 
away  my  children,  and  this  cotton  also,  and  then  I 
shall  find  time  to  read  the  Bible,  and  learn  what  it 
teaches  about  my  poor  soul.'  " 

The  little  wheel  he  had  been  turning  suddenly 
stopped.  He  was  not  willing  to  unite  in  such  a 
prayer,  and  began  to  feel  that  he  was  without  good 
excuse  for  not  learning  to  read  the  Bible.  He  had 
felt  friendly  to  it,  and  was  willing  his  wife  should 
learn,  but  for  himself,  he  felt  it  would  not  feed  his 
family,  and  that  must  be  done. 

We  said  a  few  earnest  words  to  him,  and  tried 
to  show  him  that  the  Bible  would  reveal  One  who 
could  help  him  bear  his  daily  burdens,  and  bring 
light  and  joy  into  his  dark  home.  He  was  evidently 
moved  by  what  we  said,  and  when  we  left  he  rose 
to  bid  us  good-by. 

One  more  call  and  our  day's  work  would  be 
done.  It  was  in  Lizzie's  school,  which  was  on  our 
way  home.  What  a  contrast  between  this  cheap, 
rough  room,  and  her  mother's  beneath  it.  The  walls 
were  indeed  coarsely  plastered,  only  with  mud,  but 
they  were  whitened  with  a  clay  wash,  and  the 
rough  rafters,  if  unpainted,  were  not  begrimmed 
with  soot.    The  floor  was  of  earth,  but  covered 


LIGHT  IN  DARK  HOMES. 


with  coarse  reed  matting,  and  in  place  of  the  hole 
in  the  roof  to  let  the  smoke  out  and  the  light  in, 
were  windows,  with  oiled  paper  for  glass. 

That  number  of  regularly-arranged  pairs  of  little 
shoes  at  the  door  by  which  we  enter,  told  us  that 
twenty-five  owners  of  small  feet  were  there,  begin- 
ning the  ascent  of  the  hill  of  knowledge.  Wee 
Altom,  gold,  and  her  companions,  Varteeg,  little 
rose,  Oghda,  HiUdah,  Aghaveni,  dove,  and  Ester, 
with  their  alphabets  safely  pasted  upon  a  piece  of 
thin  board,  were  proud  to  show  us  that  of  their 
thirty-eight  letters,  they  had  mastered  six. 

The  next  class  could  read  words  of  five  syllables 
in  the  primer,  while  each,  on  a  bit  of  slate,  with  a 
smaller  piece  for  a  pencil,  wrote  small  words.  In 
t^iis  land  where  the  day's  wages  are  from  twelve  to 
twenty  cents,  and  that  only  in  winter,  the  people 
cannot  pay  for  good  slates  for  their  children.  So 
the  missionaries  import  the  largest  size,  without 
frames,  and  these  are  cut  up  into  pieces  of  different 
sizes.  The  broken  bits  serve  for  the  poorest,  who 
can  have  slate  and  pencil  for  a  cent,  or  less. 

Another  class  in  this  school  had  nearly  com- 
pleted their  primer;  the  next  could  read  in  the 
Testament,  and  write  with  ink  on  paper,  add  col- 
umns of  figures,  and  were  studying  their  catechism. 


92  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

The  class  in  oral  geography  marched  up  to  the 
map  of  the  world,  on  the  walls,  and  told  us  how 
many  continents  and  oceans  there  are ;  and  could 
point  to  the  place  in  America  from  which  the  mis- 
sionaries came. 

A  lesson  followed  in  repeating  Scripture,  each 
one  giving  chapter  and  verse,  and  then  all  united 
in  the  hymn,  "  There  is  a  happy  land." 

We  closed  with  a  short  prayer,  and  bidding 
them  good-by  went  home  to  supper  and  the  even- 
ing prayer-meeting.  The  next  day  we  returned  to 
our  city  home. 

But  have  we  not  helped  you  to  see,  dear  young 
friends,  some  of  the  difficulties  the  missionary  has 
to  overcome  in  carrying  the  gospel  to  these  poor 
people  Do  you  not  think  it  requires  great  patience, 
wisdom,  and  love,  to  do  this  w^ork }  And  do  you 
not  see  some  of  the  ways  in  which  you,  at  home  in 
your  dear,,  happy  native  land,  can  help  us 

One  thing  you  can  all  do;  you  can  pray  that 
the  hearts  of  these  people  may  be  opened  to  re- 
ceive the  Bible,  that  they  may  be  inclined  to  learn 
to  read  it,  and  that  their  souls  may  be  enlightened 
by  God's  Holy  Spirit  to  understand  and  obey  it. 


A  VISIT  TO  ICHMEH, 


93 


CHAPTER  IX. 
A  VISIT  TO  ICHMEH, 

For  weeks  I  had  been  planning  to  make  a  tour 
of  the  villages,  which  I  wished  very  much  to  ac- 
complish before  the  winter  snows  should  come  on. 
I  had  not  once  thought  I  could  go  alone,  and  was 
waiting  for  Susie's  papa  to  accompany  me ;  but  his 
work  seemed  to  increase  rather  than  diminish,  and 
I  began  to  feel  that  I  must  start  out  alone.  We 
talked  over  the  matter  and  concluded  it  was  quite 
safe  and  proper  for  me  to  go  with  our  well-tried 
and  faithful  Garabed  as  an  escort,  especially  as  the 
distance  between  the  villages  was  short,  and  each 
night  I  should  rest  at  the  house  of  some  pastor  or 
teacher — "  our  boys,"  as  we  called  them,  for  they 
were  all  from  our  Harpoot  schools. 

The  day  was  bright  and  propitious  which  had 
been  set  for  the  start.  The  black  donkey  was  led 
up  to  the  step,  and  I  felt  sure  I  could  manage  him, 
though  once  or  twice  he  had  taken  the  bits  in 
his  teeth,  and  run  away,  quite  to  my  discomfort. 
Garabed  mounted  his  mule,  and  we  set  out.    I  did 


94  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


not  burden  myself  with  the  large  bags  this  time. 
I  only  took  my  small  bedstead,  one  quilt  and  a 
pillow,  with  an  extra  shawl,  lest  the  cold  should 
increase  before  my  return.  For  food  I  put  up  a 
box  of  ginger  snaps  and  some  tea,  determined  to 
try  the  food  I  might  get  on  the  way.  Though 
much  of  it  might  be  unpalatable,  I  was  not  afraid 
of  suffering  with  hunger,  for  I  could  come  home 
when  I  pleased. 

We  rode  on  very  quietly  without  adventure,  un- 
til we  arrived  at  a  small  stream,  where  donkey  set 
set  up  his  will,  and  would  not  cross.  I  coaxed,  and 
Garabed  used  the  whip,  but  all  to  no  purpose;  so 
I  dismounted,  and  Garabed  gave  him  a  strong  push, 
when  he  jumped  the  stream,  and  capered  off,  running 
some  distance  before  Garabed  could  catch  him. 
This  delayed  us  a  little,  and  the  day  was  drawing 
to. a  close,  when,  after  a  six-hours'  ride,  which  my 
donkey  had  made  seven,  we  slowly  rode  up  through 
the  trees  into  the  large  village  of  Ichmeh,  and 
alighted  at  the  house  of  good  pastor  Krekore,  where 
I  well  knew  I  should  be  a  welcome  guest.  He  was 
at  the  door  before  we  were,  and  helped  me  into  his 
nice  new  house,  the  best  in  the  village. 

This  pastor  is  the  "  Little  Gregory"  mentioned 
in  Grace  Illustrated,  where  his  house  is  called  a 


A  VISIT  TO  ICHMEH. 


95 


"  mouse-hole,"  but  he  had  since  moved  into  a  new 
one  with  four  nice  rooms.  The  parlor  was  not  yet 
furnished,  but  as  he  waited  patiently  for  the  house, 
he  will  doubtless  in  due  time  have  all  the  rooms 
nicely  fitted  up.'  This  house  was  built  for  the  pas- 
tor by  a  very -energetic  man  in  the  village,  who  has 
a  large  family  to  provide  for,  but  who  loves  the 
pastor  very  much,  and  not  only  meant,  when  he  be- 
gan the  work,  that  he  should  have  the  house,  but 
intended  to  fit  up  the  parlor,  or  guest-room,  in  good 
oriental  style ;  that  is,  not  with  chairs,  tables,  mir- 
rors and  pictures,  as  we  should,  but  with  carpets 
and  cushions.  But  the  house  cost  more  than  he 
anticipated,  and  times  were  hard,  so  he  said,  "  We 
must  wait  for  a  season  for  the  rest."  The  four 
rooms  are  built  around  an  open  hall  in  the  centre, 
which  makes  it  very  pleasant  in  summer. 

Protestantism  has  done  much  to  improve  this 
village  of  Ichmeh.  One  of  the  best  houses  belongs 
to  three  brothers,  two  of  whom  are  professed  Prot- 
estants, and  the  other  more  than  half  persuaded. 
These  brothers  are  all  of  marked  ability,  and  when 
the  gospel  came  to  them,  they  could  not  stay  in 
their  dark,  dirty  home.  Two  of  them  came 'out 
boldly  from  their  nominal  Christianity,  the  other 
believed  in  heart,  but  hoped  to  have  all  the  benefits 


96  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

of  the  gospel  while  remaining  in  the  church  in 
which  he  had  been  born. 

There  was  a  priest  in  this  village  also  who  be- 
came a  Protestant.  His  name  was  Emmanuel. 
He  could  not  withstand  the  desire  to  read  the  Bi- 
ble, so  he  bought  one  secretly,  and  took  it  to  his 
home.  After  the  children  were  asleep  for  the  night, 
he  told  his  wife  what  he  had  done,  and  bringing 
the  book  out  of  its  hiding-place,  he  read  till  a  late 
hour,  while  Marta,  his  wife,  listened.  This  they 
continued  to  do  till  the  third  night,  when  they 
both  wept  over  it.  The  priest,  looking  towards 
his  wife,  said  solemnly,  "  Wife,  if  this  is  true,  we 
are  lost." 

"  If  this  is  true  let  us  receive  it,"  she  replied. 

"  What,  become  Protestants  T 

"  Yes,"  said  the  heroic  wife. 

"We  shall  have  to  beg  from  house  to  house, 
wife,  if  we  do." 

"  Let  us  go,  then.  I  will  take  your  hand  and 
go  with  you.  Our  souls  are  of  more  importance 
than  our  bodies." 

The  next  morning  they  went  to  the  service  in 
the*  Protestant  chapel,  and  told  Pastor  Krekore  and 
the  brethren  what  they  had  resolved  to  do.  It 
made  a  great  stir  in  the  village,  for  it  was  at  once 


A  VISIT  TO  ICHMEH. 


97 


noised  from  one  end  of  the  place  to  the  other,  and 
people  ran  to  the  church  and  marketplace  to  find 
out  about  it.  They  had  another  priest,  an  old, 
gray-headed  man.  He  was  much  excited.  He 
sent  some  of  the  men  to  talk  with  "  this  insane 
man,"  as  he  called  him,  and  to  persuade  him  to  re- 
pent of  his  wickedness  and  folly;  and  when  he 
found  it  availed  nothing,  a  curse  was  pronounced 
upon  the  heretic.  They  went  to  his  house,  and 
threatened  to  pull  it  down  over  his  head.  They 
declared  he  should  starve,  threw  mud  and  stones  at 
the  house,  and  said  that  God  would  curse  him  and 
his  family.  When  Marta  went  out  to  the  fountain 
for  water,  the  women  would  scream  at  her  from 
their  housetops,  "  Prote  !  prote  !  You  are  worse 
than  a  Turk.  We  put  you  up  on  twelve  cushions 
the  night  your  husband  was  made  priest,  and  now 
we  will  pull  you  down  again.  You  are  no  longer 
priestess,  but  a  prode"  (leper). 

Of  course  this  was  all  very  hard  for  her  to  bear, 
but  she  told  me  when  I  called  upon  in  her  humble 
home,  that  the  dear  Saviour,  whom  she  had  learned 
about  in  the  Bible,  and  who  had  opened  their  eyes, 
helped  them  to  bear  all  this  persecution. 

When  we  arrived  at  the  pastor's  house,  Marta, 
his  wife,  was  not  at  home.    She  had  gone  to  a 

DanRlitPis  of  Ai  mt-nla.  I  ■? 


98  DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


neighbor's  to  have  some  washing  done.  Formerly 
the  women  carried  their  washing  to  the  fountain  in 
the  centre  of  the  village,  but  I  think  it  cost  some  of 
them  a  great  deal  of  suffering.  Many  of  them, 
were  crippled  with  rheumatism  and  neuralgia, 
which  was  doubtless  caused  by  their  standing  in 
the  water  while  washing,  as  they  were  obliged  to 
do.  Now  they  have  adopted  the  custom  of  doing 
the  washing  at  their  houses.  Two  or  three  families 
join  together  and  have  what  we  should  call  a  wash- 
ing-bee. The  pastor's  wife  was  away  for  this  pur- 
pose. He  set  off  immediately  to  call  her,  and  she 
quickly  came,  and  on  her  return  prepared  the  even- 
ing meal  of  cracked  wheat.  The  little  table,  as  I 
explained  before,  or  what  we  should  call  a  tray,  was 
placed  on  a  low  stool,  the  wheat,  seasoned  with  a 
little  meat,  was  served  in  a  deep  dish  and  placed  in 
the  centre,  while  thin  cakes  of  bread  were  laid  upon 
the  outside,  and  a  copper-dish  of  buttermilk  was 
placed  beside  the  wheat.  Garabed  brought  us  a 
cup  of  tea,  and  some  of  the  ginger-snaps  we  had 
brought;  wooden  spoons  were  given  to  each,  the 
blessing  was  asked,  and  we  began  our  dinner. 

Their  dinner  was  always  a  very  simple  repast. 
Once,  as  a  special  honor  to  me,  they  had  a  chicken 
soup,  and  after  that  was  served,  a  pilav — cooked 


A  VISIT  TO  ICHMEH. 


93 


rice  .with  butter — and  the  chicken  from  which  the 
soup  was  made.  The  people  are  very  frugal,  and 
we  sometimes  think  they  do  not  eat  enough  to 
make  them  strong.  They  have  but  few  luxuries, 
but  some  of  them  have  more  than  Joseph  and  Mary 
probably  had  in  their  humble  home  in  Nazareth ; 
and  when  Jesus  went  out  from  that  home  to  be  a 
preacher,  he  doubtless  often  satisfied  his  hunger 
on  a  very  simple  meal.  We  read  of  the  barley- 
loaves  and  of  the  broiled  fish  which  he  prepared  on 
the  shore  of  Galilee.  "  Little  Gregory,"  this  good 
pastor  of  Ichmeh,  had  few  worldly  goods  and  no 
luxuries,  but  it  seemed  to  me  his  house  was  like 
the  home  in  Bethany  where  the  Master  loved  to  go 
and  rest. 

Pastor  Krekore  gave  me  his  little  study  for  the 
night.  He  and  Garabed  put  up  my  bedstead,  and 
then  he  borrowed  a  bed,  and  with  my  quilt  I  slept 
very  nicely  till  the  village  cocks  told  me  it  was 
time  to  make  preparation  for  breakfast. 

Our  breakfast  consisted  of  fried  eggs  and  bread. 
Then  the  pastor  had  family  devotions,  after  which 
he  invited  me  to  go  with  him  to  a  village  about  two 
miles  away.  Hohannes,  a  very  earnest  helper,  was 
laboring  there,  and  had  urged  pastor  Krekore  to 
bring  me  to  his  village.   He  hoped  I  would  be  able 


lOO 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


to  help  him  by  persuading  some  of  the  women  there 
to  read.  I  was  glad  to  go  with  him,  for  I  felt  he 
would  be  an  assistance  in  this  work. 

The  donkey  was  made  ready,  the  pastor  took 
Garabed's  mule,  and  we  started  out  on  our  second 
day's  visit. 


ACROSS  THE  EUPHRATES. 


CHAPTER  X. 

ACROSS  THE  EUPHRATES. 

The  day  was  cold,  but  I  buttoned  my  fur- 
lined  sacque  snugly  about  me,  and  rode  comforta- 
bly along  over  mountain  and  hillside  till  we  came 
to  a  branch  of  the  Euphrates.  Across  this  stream 
lay  the  pleasant  village  of  Oozoonova  (Long  Mead- 
ow) to  which  we  were  going. 

We  had  to  wait  till  the  ugly-looking  scow  should 
come  over  to  take  us  to  the  other  side.  Here  again 
we  had  a  most  comical  scene  with  my  independent 
little  donkey ;  but  he  was  at  length  conquered,  and 
we  all  arrived  in  safety  on  the  opposite  bank,  and 
after  a  short  ride  we  dismounted  in  front  of  Hohan- 
nes'  quarters. 

Hohannes  had  no  wife ;  he  was  still  a  student 
at  Harpoot,  and  spent  only  his  winter  vacations  in 
this  place.  He  had  commenced  his  work  here 
under  great  discouragements.  When  he  first  came 
to  this  village  there  was  but  one  Protestant  in  it, 
but  now  he  has  a  congregation  of  fifty  men  and 
twelve  women. 


102         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA, 


The  day  he  came  to  Oozoonova  he  entered 
his  Httle  room,  where  there  was  scarcely  space 
enough  for  himself  and  the  box  that  contained  his 
clothes  and  books,  and  with  a  trembling  heart  he 
took  out  his  Bible,  read  a  few  of  its  sweet  promises, 
and  then  kneeling  down,  commended  himself  to 
Him  who  alone  could  help  him  in  such  a  hard 
place. 

He  then  went  to  the  chapel,  lighted  a  fire,  and 
taking  his  board  and  wooden  mallets,  went  to  the 
roof.  This  board,  called  a  gochnag,  is  used  as  a  bell 
to  call  the  people  to  morning  and  evening  prayers. 
The  Armenians  were  accustomed  to  send  the  sex- 
ton from  house  to  house  for  this  purpose.  The 
board  gong  was  an  invention  of  one  of  the  early 
missionaries,  and  became  so  popular  that  it  was 
adopted  all  over  the  plain  of  Harpoot  by  the  Arme- 
nian Christians  as  well  as  the  Protestants. 

Hohannes  found  a  good  place,  and  hanging  the 
board  by  the  strings  attached  to  each  end,  struck  it 
vigorously  to  call  the  people  to  the  evening  service. 
Two  persons  came ;  one,  the  Protestant  we  men- 
tioned before,  and  the  other  a  spy  sent  in  by  those 
who  hated  the  Protestants,  to  report  all  who  might 
be  present.  On  subsequent  days  more  came  in, 
the  audience  increasing  one  by  one,  till  the  little 


ACROSS  THE  EUPHRATES.  103 


chapel  was  filled,  and  they  opened  a  larger  one,  and 
set  aside  one  part  of  this  for  the  women.  Only  one 
woman  came  for  a  long  time,  till  an  earnest  sister 
from  Harpoot,  on  her  way  to  another  place,  spent 
a  night  here,  and  invited  her  hostess  to  go  with  her 
to  the  evening  service  in  the  chapel.  She  consent- 
ed, and  was  greatly  pleased  with  Hohannes'  simple, 
earnest  words  about  Jesus.  "  Why,  I  can  under- 
stand all  he  says,"  said  she.  "  How  unlike  our 
priests !"  The  priests  read  in  ancient  Armenian, 
and  though  in  talking  they  use  the  modern,  it  is 
only  a  low,  confused  sound,  which  scarcely  reaches 
the  poor  women  behind  the  lattice-work  in  the  gal- 
lery. 

At  the  time  of  my  visit  the  number  of  women 
had  increased  to  twelve ;  but  Hohannes  w^as  not 
satisfied  to  have  them  only  come  to  church.  He 
earnestly  desired  that  they  should  learn  to  read, 
and  it  was  for  the  advancement  of  this  object  that 
he  had  anticipated  my  visit.  He  met  me,  however, 
on  that  cold  morning  with  a  sad  face. 

"  Hanum,"  said  he,  "you  have  come  at  a  very 
unfortunate  time.  I  wish  you  to  see  the  sisters,  but 
they  will  not  come  here,"  (he  had  no  wife,)  "  and  I 
am  afraid  to  take  you  to  their  houses  to-day.  We 
have  had  a  three-days'  feast  after  a  wedding,  and 


I04         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


the  people  are  well  drunken,  excepting  the  Protes- 
tants and  the  younger  brides.  They  would  not  use 
any  violence  against  you,  but  they  may  say  unbe- 
coming words,  and  I  should  feel  it  as  much  as  if 
they  said  it  to  my  mother.  But,  hanum,  I  do  wish 
you  to  see  the  sisters ;  I  have  so  longed  to  have 
you  come." 

I  was  not  afraid,  however,  and  desired  to  start 
immediately,  and  Hohannes  agreed  to  go  with  me. 
We  went  first  to  the  house  of  a  large  family  near 
where  there  were  six  women.  Some  of  the  young- 
men  came  to  the  chapel,  but  none  of  the  women. 
They  were  all  convinced,  however  of  the  truth  of 
our  teachings.  The  youngest  had  learned  to  read 
in  another  village,  and  the  others  desired  to,  and 
their  husbands  would  consent,  if  the  mother-in-law 
and  the  oldest  brother  could  be  persuaded  to  allow 
it. 

We  went  in,  Pastor  Krekore  following.  Hohan- 
nes introduced  me  to  Elmas,  the  eldest  of  the 
women,  as  the  mother-in-law  was  away.  She 
received  me  very  politely,  and  invited  me  to  sit 
down,  placing  a  new  large  cushion  for  me.  The 
house  was  neat,  even  to  the  mud  floor,  which  was 
almost  as  hard  as  cement,  and  it  was  very  evident 
that  these  were  the  rich  people  of  the  village,  one 


ACROSS  THE  EUPHRATES. 


of  the  first  families."  Several  of  the  younger 
brides  were  dressed  in  silk,  with  a  profusion  of  sil- 
ver jewelry  about  them.  They  had  all  been  at  the 
wedding,  as  it  was  at  the  house  of  a  relative. 

Hohannes  brought  a  large  Bible,  one  of  five  he 
had  sold  in  the  village.  I  felt  quite  at  ease  when 
he  said,  "The  hanum  will  read  this  to  you."  The 
women  gathered  close  about  me,  and  I  read  to  them 
a  part  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  pausing  at  in- 
tervals to  explain.  They  were  much  interested  in 
all  I  read  and  said  to  them,  and  were  quite  free  to 
talk  to  me,  even  though  several  of  the  young  men 
had  come  near,  and  Hohannes  also.  They  seemed 
greatly  pleased  that  he  had  kept  his  promise  to 
bring  me  to  them.  The  oldest,  Elmas,  said,  "We 
wish  to  read,  but  our  mother-in-law  will  not  let  us. 
She  says  it  will  make  us  lazy  and  impudent."  Their 
mouths  were  tied  up  with  a  black  cloth,  as  is  the 
custom  with  the  city  brides ;  but  as  they  talked, 
they  threw  back  their  veils,  and  pulled  the  black 
cloth  down  under  the  chin,  and  were  very  bright 
and  chatty.  Soon  I  saw  a  sudden  movement. 
Their  faces  were  all  covered  in  a  moment,  and  they 
rose  to  their  feet. 

Looking  toward  the  door  I  saw  a  man,  about  thir- 
ty years  of  age,  enter.    I  concluded  he  was  the  patri- 

Daughters  of  Armenia. 


io6         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


arch,  or  head  of  the  house,  and  I  also  arose. 
Hohannes  introduced  him  as  the  eldest  brother, 
and  I  invited  him  him  to  sit  on  the  cushion  above 
me,  as  the  most  honorable  place. 

He  declined,  saying,  "  I  am  not  fit  to  sit  beside 
you.    I  have  been  drinking  wine." 

I  replied,  "  I  will  excuse  you,  brother,  if  you  will 
drink  no  more." 

I  had  won  him.  He  sat  down  beside  me, 
and  when  he  noticed  the  Bible,  asked  me  to  read 
on. 

I  said,  "  I  have  been  reading  to  the  women ;  it 
will  be  more  proper  for  Pastor  Krekore  to  read 
to  you,"  and  I  rose  and  handed  the  Bible  to  the 
pastor;  but  he  insisted  that  I  should  read,  and  the 
pastor  returned  me  the  Bible,  saying  he  would 
prefer  to  have  me.  I  read  to  him  the  Saviour's 
prayer  in  John  17th.  He  was  much  interested, 
and  said,  "  It  is  a  good  thing  to  read  the  Bible,  but 
we  are  ignorant,  and  our  priests  know  nothing." 

"I  am  glad  you  have  a  Bible  in  your  house, 
brother,"  I  said.  "  I  hope  you  read  it  daily  and  will 
let  the  brides  read  also.  They  too  have  souls. 
The  Bible  is  God's  letter,  sent  down  from  heaven 
to  teach  us  the  way  of  salvation.  What  good  will 
it  do  if  we  put  it  in  a  box,  and  never  take  it  out  to 


ACROSS  THE  EUPHRATES.  107 

find  out  what  it  says?  I  think  if  you  will  consent, 
the  brides  will  all  gladly  learn  to  read." 

"  Let  them  read  if  they  wish,"  he  replied,  but 
let  them  not  speak  to  me  or  uncover  their  faces." 

Here  his  mother  came  in,  and  we  arose  to  re- 
ceive her,  while  he  kept  his  seat.  She  sat  down  on 
the  other  side  of  me,  when  he  said,  "  Mother,  the 
hanum  wishes  these  brides  to  read.  What  do  you 
say  r 

"  They  have  no  time,"  she  answered  politely  ; 
"we  have  to  work  for  our  living.  Reading  is  a 
good  thing,  but  makes  brides  lazy  and  disobe- 
dient." 

"I  have  to  work,"  I  said,  "and  can  do  more 
from  the  very  fact  that  I  read ;  the  Bible  helps  me. 
It  makes  people  more  obedient,  and  shows  us  that 
it  is  wrong  to  be  lazy.  We  need  food  for  our  bod- 
ies, and  we  must  labor  for  this,  but  the  Bible  tells 
us  how  to  get  food  for  our  hungry,  starving  souls. 
God  has  given  you  these  brides  to  care  for,  and 
will  you  keep  them  all  the  time  at  work  for  these 
bodies  that  will  die  by-and-by.'*  What  will  you 
answer  to  the  Lord  when  he  asks  you  about  their 
souls.-*  He  has  given  us  time  to  care  for  body 
and  soul  too,  and  he  will  help  us  if  we  ask  him." 

"  Will  he  help  us  spin,  weave,  cook  and  sew  i*" 


io8         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


"  Yes,  he  has  said  so,  but  he  says,  *  Seek  first 
the  kingdom  of  God  and  his  righteousness,  and 
all  these  things  shall  be  added  unto  you.' " 

"  Well,"  said  she,  "  then  they  may  read,  if  they 
will  do  their  work,  and  not  trouble  me." 

Hohannes  was  much  pleased  at  the  result  of 
our  conversation,  and  has  a  strong  hope  that  this 
whole  family  before  long  will  become  Christians. 


AT  THE  FEAST. 


CHAPTER  XI. 
AT  THE  FEAST. 

While  I  was  talking  with  this  man  and  his 
mother  an  invitation  came  for  us  to  go  to  the  house 
of  feasting,  and  Hohannes  thought  it  best  to  accept 
it,  as  one  of  the  brothers  in  that  house  was  the 
most  influential  Protestant  in  the  village,  and  a  true 
Christian.  He  said  I  should  see  more  women  there 
than  if  I  went  from  house  to  house ;  and  as  it  was 
the  hour  when  most  of  the  men  would  be  at  the 
market-place,  the  opportunity  to  see  the  women 
would  be  still  more  favorable.  The  feast,  accord- 
ing to  the  usual  custom,  was  given  in  the  house  of 
the  bridegroom's  godfather  on  the  third  day  after 
the  marriage. 

The  old  lady  with  whom  I  had  just  been  talking 
offered  to  go  with  me,  and  Hohannes  and  Krekore 
went  on  before  to  make  sure  that  all  was  right. 

Kevork,  the  Protestant  brother,  met  us  at  the 
door  and  invited  us  in.  I  wished  to  go  to  the  part 
of  the  room  where  the  women  were  gathered,  but 
he  would  not  listen  for  a  moment  to  such  an  ar- 


no         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


rangement.  I  must  have  the  first  place  in  his 
house,  and  he  would  bring  the  women  to  that  part 
of  the  room. 

His  wife  and  several  others  came  and  gave  me 
the  usual  salutations,  though  they  seemed  to  feel 
out  of  place.  Altoon,  the  youngest  brother's  wife, 
sat  down  near  me,  and  Hohannes  said  to  me  aside, 
"  If  you  can  persuade  that  woman  to  read,  the  whole 
village  will  follow.  She  has  no  children,  is  very 
bright,  and  will  learn  quickly." 

"My  husband  will  not  let  me  read,"  said  Al- 
toon. 

"He  will  not  hinder  you,"  replied  Hohannes, 
"and  Kevork  says  he  will  get  you  a  primer,  and 
when  you  finish  that,  a  Testament." 

"Let  Shushan,  his  wife,  learn  first,"  said  she, 
"  and  then  I  will  think  about  it." 

The  truth  was  she  was  unwilling  to  be  the  lead- 
er— ashamed  to  be  called  the  reformer  of  her  vil- 
lage. The  women  of  our  happy  America  can 
scarcely  realize  how  much  it  costs  the  poor,  igno- 
rant daughters  of  Armenia  to  read.  Many  a  Chris- 
tian woman  at  home  would  be  unwilling  even  to 
repeat  a  verse  of  Scripture  in  a  prayer-meeting, 
simply  because  it  is  against  the  custom ;  and  can 
they  wonder  if  these  poor  creatures  are  held  in  the 


AT  THE  FEAST. 


Ill 


same  iron  grip  of  custom.  For  my  own  part  I  am 
amazed  that  so  many  do  break  away  from  its  tyran- 
ny, and  learn.  I  often  think  they  manifest  more 
persistent  earnestness  than  would  be  found  among 
our  own  more  highly-favored  sisters.  They  have 
everything  to  drag  them  down.  If  we  had  been 
brought  up  in  such  dark,  dirty,  cold  homes,  we 
should  soon  be  as  degraded  as  they. 

The  gospel  is  producing  great  changes  there, 
but  when  will  these  homes  all  be  changed }  Oh, 
that  is  the  question  so  often  asked.  It  was  put  to 
me  by  one  of  our  Armenian  pastors  not  long  since. 
It  seemed  to  him  he  could  not  wait  for  his  people 
to  be  elevated  by  the  slow  means  we  were  employ- 
ing. Sometimes  he  was  very  sad  and  dejected  over 
the  condition  of  his  people.  But  I  told  him  how 
long  it  took  to  bring  our  country  up  to  where  it 
now  is.  I  showed  him  a  picture  of  the  first  church 
built  by  our  Pilgrim  fathers  not  far  from  Plymouth 
Rock,  and  he  saw  that  his  own  church  was  a  much 
better  building. 

"We  must  go  on  patiently  laboring,"  I  said, 
"  and  all  the  blessings  you  are  longing  for  will 
come." 

"  But,  hanum,  I  wish  to  see  it  in  my  lifetime ! 
A  few  years  hence  I  shall  be  in  my  grave." 


112         DA  UGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA, 


I  wish  all  the  people  in  America  enjoying  homes 
made  beautiful  by  the  light  and  knowledge  of  the 
Saviour,  could  have  seen  this  young  man  as  we 
talked  together,  handsome  and  manly,  his  brilliant 
black  eyes  saddened  by  a  longing  that  could  not  be 
satisfied.  I  am  sure  it  would  stimulate  them  to  do 
more  for  this  benighted  land. 

But  we'must  go  back  to  the  home  in  Oozoono- 
va,  where  we  had  been  invited  to  the  feast.  The 
copper  table  had  been  brought  in,  and  the  feast 
was  ready. 

"Please  be  seated  here,  hanum,"  said  Ke- 
vork. 

I  politely  thanked  him ;  but  seeing  the  women 
around  the  table  in  an  opposite  quarter  of  the  room, 
I  moved  in  that  direction,  saying  that  I  preferred 
to  observe  their  custom,  and  would  eat  with  the 
women.  He  seemed  shocked  at  the  idea,  and  Pastor 
Krekore  and  Hohannes  both  protested.  He  then 
called  his  wife  and  the  other  women  to  come  and 
sit  by  me.  But  they  did  not  come.  They  said 
they  had  taken  dinner  and  were  not  hungry,  but 
the  true  reason  was  that  they  thought  it  unwom- 
anly to  eat  with  the  men.  They  said  to  me,  "It  is 
your  custom."  And  then  they  asked,  "Why  are 
these  women  honored  so  much  more  than  we  are 


AT  THE  FEAST  113 

Why  even  our  own  husb'ands  honor  them  !  We 
will  read,  and  then  we  too  shall  have  a  place  as 
equals  with  our  husbands." 

So  this  helped  our  influence  with  the  women 
more  than  anything  else  could  have  done.  This 
was  the  first  time  a  missionary  lady  had  been  to 
that  village ;  and  the  result  was  that  several  of 
these  women  began  at  once  to  read,  and  when  I  go 
back  I  expect  to  find  that  most  of  the  sisters  in 
Oozoonova  are  reading. 

Kevork  placed  a  high  cushion  for  me  at  the 
table,  and  after  the  blessing  they  gave  me  a  spoon, 
and  I  dipped  with  them  into  the  several  dishes. 
There  was  the  buttermilk  soup,  which  is  a  com- 
mon and  quite  aristocratic  dish  among  them,  and  I 
bravely  ate  some  of  it ;  then  gladly  seized,  an  op- 
portunity to  put  my  spoon  into  the  next  dish,  which 
tasted  as  nice  as  -oyster  soup.  Several  kinds  of 
meats  were  served,  and  Kevork  was  much  gratified 
to  have  me  like  them,  as  I  certainly  did.  The  food 
was  all  well  cooked,  and  the  bread  was  sweet  and 
light,  though  not  very  white.  I  enjoyed  the  nice 
fresh  butter,  adding  a  little  salt ;  also  the  honey, 
and  the  cheese  from  the  Koordish  mountains,  which 
seemed  quite  like  that  of  home  manufacture. 

After  the  meats  came  fruits.    They  know  noth- 

Dangliteis  of  Armenia.  1  5 


114         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


ing  of  pies  and  puddings  in  Armenia.  We  some- 
times find  rice  cooked  in  milk,  with  sugar  or  honey 
on  it,  and  a  kind  of  sweet  paste,  but  these  are  rare. 
But  grapes,  apples,  pears,  apricots,  and  melons 
abound,  with  a  great  variety  of  nuts.  These,  with 
bastic,  a  kind  of  dried  paste,  and  candy,  are  some- 
times used  in  the  cities  as  dessert,  but  not  often  in 
the  villas^es. 

After  our  meal  was  finished,  the  washbowl  and 
ewer  were  brought  to  each  one,  a  young  girl  follow- 
ing with  a  towel.  The  washbowl  was  of  copper, 
with  a  cover  filled  with  holes,  and  a  cake  of  soap  on 
a  little  plate  on  the  central  part  of  the  cover.  The 
ewer  was  a  very  pretty  copper-vessel.  One  towel 
served  for  all. 

The  table  removed,  Kevork  brought  the  Bible, 
and  Pastor  Krekore  read  and  prayed,-  when  we 
mounted  our  animals  and  hastened  to  the  river, 
fearing  it  would  be  too  late  to  cross  that  night. 
We  reached  the  shore  just  in  time  for  the  last 
crossing,  and  were  soon  climbing  up  the  steep  side 
of  a  mountain.  It  was  dark  when  we  rode  into 
the  village  of  Shukhaji,  where  we  spent  the  second 
night,  at  the  house  of  the  earnest  preacher,  Menzo, 
and  his  nice  little  wife  Mariam. 

The  gospel  has  done  much  for  this  family.  It 


AT  THE  FEAST. 


has  lifted  them  out  of  poverty  and  ignorance,  and 
made  them  intelligent,  earnest  Christians.  The 
mother  with  a  large  family  to  care  for,  found  time 
to  work  among  the  women  after  Varteeg,  the  Bible- 
woman,  had  left,  inviting  them  to  the  parsonage, 
where  she  or  her  daughter  Sara  would  give  them  a 
lesson. 

Varteeg,  whose  name  signifies  Little  Rose,  was 
a  native  of  this  village.  She  had  graduated  at  our 
seminary,  and  then  returned,  and  for  several  years 
was  Bible-woman  and  teacher.  She  afterwards 
married  a  native  helper,  and  went  with  him  to  an- 
other village,  where  they  were  doing  great  good. 
Her  loss  was  deeply  felt  in  this  place,  and  ]\Iariam, 
the  pastor's  wife,  sought  earnestly  to  supply  her 
place.  Though  often  confined  to  her  bed  with 
painful  sickness,  she  would  never  send  the  women 
away  who  came  to  her.  She  would  take  the  baby 
from  the  oldest  girl,  Sara,  and  bid  her  give  the  les- 
son, which  she  would  herself  explain  while  bolster- 
ed up  with  pillows.  Sara  could  not  have  been 
more  than  ten  years  old  at  that  time.  She  came 
to  the  seminary  at  Harpoot,  two  years  after,  and 
from  that  time  always  taught  in  Shukhaji  during 
the  vacations. 


ii6         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA, 


CHAPTER  XII. 

GULASER'S  HOUSEHOLD 

Our  route  the  next  morning  lay  along  the  side 
of  a  spur  of  the  Taurus  mountains,  whose  snow- 
capped peaks  on  our  left  touched  the  fleecy  clouds, 
while  on  our  right,  at  their  base,  not  more  than  two 
miles  away,  flowed  the  Euphrates,  its  banks  green 
with  fields  of  springing  grain;  the  two  opposing 
seasons  a  fit  emblem  of  the  hand-to-hand  conflict 
going  on  between  the  two  moral  forces  in  this  im- 
mediate region. 

We  reached  Ichmeh  after  an  hour's  ride,  and 
found  the  pastor's  wife  and  Garabed  quite  anxious 
about  us.  As  they  had  expected  us  the  evening 
before,  Garabed  had  prepared  a  hot  soup,  thinking 
we  should  be  tired  and  hungry  after  our  day's 
work,  not  once  imagining  we  were  at  that  hour 
feasting  at  the  house  of  Kevork.  When  we  reach- 
ed the  pastor's  house,  we  found  we  had  been  invi- 
ted to  breakfast  at  Gulaser's. 

And  now,  as  Susie  asks,  "  Who  is  Gulaser  T  I 
doubt  not  all  our  readers  will  be  gratified  to  know 


GULASER'S  HOUSEHOLD.  117 

something  of  his  history.  He  was  the  man  who 
had  been  so  much  interested  in  building  Pastor 
Krekore's  house,  and  was  one  of  the  most  prosper- 
ous and  influential  men  in  Ichmeh. 

About  thirty  years  ago,  when  a  bright  young 
lad,  he  was  betrothed  to  a  handsome  girl  in  a  vil- 
lage, about  eight  hours'  ride  distant.  Both  belong- 
ed to  the  higher  class  of  society,  and  of  course  jew- 
elry and  other  gifts  were  liberally  exchanged,  though 
custom  forbade  that  they  should  see  each  other.  In 
the  course  of  time  preparations  for  a  great  wedding 
began  at  the  house  of  Boghos,  the  silversmith,  the 
brother  of  Gulaser.  The  invitations  were  sent  out; 
not  cards,  as  we  send,  but  an  apple,  a  pear,  or  a 
quince,  to  each  invited  guest.  The  women  in  their 
long  white  veils,  or  wimples,  were  going  and  coming 
at  the  silversmith's.  Soon  the  tailor  was  seen  en- 
tering the  house  with  a  large  bundle,  and  the  wom- 
en by  this  understood  that  the  bridal-dress  was 
ready.  It  is  etiquette  in  that  land  for  the  bride- 
groom to  prepare  the  wedding-dress  for  the  bride, 
and  the  tailor  makes  it,  as  they  have  no  dressma- 
kers, the  women  knowing  very  little  about  sewing. 
The  dress  required  very  little  fitting.  It  was  like 
a  long  sack,  and  if  the  bride  was  very  young,  as  is 
usually  the  case,  it  was  taken  up  under  the  girdle 


ii8         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


in  front,  and  allowed  to  trail  behind.  It  was  made 
large  enough  for  her  when  she  should  be  an  old 
woman.  The  sleeves  were  loose  and  open,  faced 
with  silk,  sometimes  yellow,  sometimes  scarlet,  and 
hung  from  the  wrists  from  half  to  three-quarters  of 
a  yard  in  length.  Over  this  garment  was  worn  a 
richly-embroidered  jacket  of  velvet  or  broadcloth. 
It  was  embroidered  with  gold  cord,  which  did  not 
tarnish  with  wear,  was  quite  expensive,  and  very 
handsome.  The  bridal-dress  was  usually  of  silk  ; 
sometimes  of  the  richest  Turk-satin,  scarlet,  yellow, 
green,  or  purple.  Even  the  poorest  must  have  silk 
of  some  quality,  though  the  money  must  be  saved 
from  other  seemingly  needful  expenses. 

The  bride's  mother  prepares  the  trousseau,  with 
the  exception  of  the  bridal  dress,  and  begins  often 
when  her  daughter  is  a  mere  babe,  that  the  chest 
may  be  wtII  filled.  Everything  is  thought  of  which 
she  can  need  for  her  person  or  house,  even  to  a  tiny 
pair  of  tongs  to  hold  a  coal  of  fire  for  her  husband 
and  his  male  friends  to  light  their  pipes  or  ciga- 
rettes. The  number  of  articles  of  course  is  deter- 
mined by  the  wealth  of  the  parties. 

When  the  bridegroom's  friends  go  to  bring  the 
bride,  they  take  the  w^edding  garments.  These  must 
first,  however,  be  blessed  by  the  priest.    He  is 


GULASER'S  HOUSEHOLD. 


1X9 


called  in  for  this  purpose,  and  after  the  consecra- 
tion the  garments  are  folded  with  great  care,  and 
a  large  handkerchief,  often  embroidered,  or  made 
of  bright  pieces  of  silk  or  calico,  is  folded  over 
them  and  fastened  with  a  silver  button  or  pin. 
When  they  arrive,  the  bride  is  dressed  in  the  pres- 
ence of  her  friends  who  have  come  to  prepare  her 
for  her  departure. 

In  this  case  the  bride  had  to  go  a  day's  journey. 
Boghos,  Gulaser's  eldest  brother,  with  both  male 
and  female  friends,  went  to  bring  her.  A  feast 
was  given  to  the  party  at  the  bride's  house,  which 
continued  late  into  the  night ;  and  the  next  morn- 
ing they  started  at  an  early  hour,  hurrying  on  the 
weeping  girl,  and  leaving  behind  the  wailing  crowd 
of  women  who  had  gathered  to  say  good-by.  Sev- 
eral of  her  near  relatives,  brothers  or  cousins,  ac- 
companied her  till  she  reached  the  house  of  the 
bridegroom's  relatives,  but  they  do  not  enter,  as 
they  there  leave  her  to  her  new  friends.  The  wed- 
ding at  the  bridegroom's  house  is  a  day  of  rejoicing, 
for  they  gain  a  daughter ;  but  the  bride's  friends 
are  expected  to  be  desolate,  for  they  lose  one,  and 
it  would  be  improper  for  them  to  be  found  enjoying 
the  festivities. 

Late  in  the  afternoon  the  sound  of  drum,  fife, 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


and  violin,  was  heard  at  the  entering  in  of  Ichmeh, 
and  the  cry  went  round,  "  The  bride  is  coming." 
By  the  time  the  party  had  reached  the  trees  at  the 
foot  of  the  hill,  a  large  number  of  men  and  women 
on  horses,  and  a  crowd  of  children  of  every  class, 
had  joined  them.  Gulaserwas  not  among  the  num- 
ber, though  you  may  be  sure  he  had  been  watching 
the  cavalcade  ever  since  his  keen  vision  had  de- 
scried it  far  away. 

According  to  custom  the  bride  could  not  come 
to  his  house,  but  stopped  over  night  with  friends. 
In  the  morning  the  happy  bridegroom,  mounted  on 
a  fine  horse,  a  man  beside  him  leading  another,  and 
escorted  by  numerous  relatives  and  companions, 
went  to  the  house  and  took  her  to  the  church  where 
the  marriage  ceremony  was  performed.  Then  with 
music  and  dancing  he  took  her  to  his  home. 

Gulaser  had  no  mother  living,  so  the  wife  of. 
Boghos,  the  eldest  brother,  received  the  bride  and 
led  her  to  one  corner  of  the  room,  where  she  stood 
the  whole  evening,  closely  veiled.  The  third  day 
this  veil  was  removed  and  her  mouth  bound  up 
with  a  black  cloth,  and  the  veil,  usually  worn  by 
the  women,  thrown  over  her  head  and  face,  coming 
down  to  her  shoulders. 

This  young  bride  of  thirty  years  ago  was  the 


GULASER'S  HOUSEHOLD. 


hostess  who  received  us  that  morning  at  Gulaser' s 
house.  Her  name  is  Hach-hatoon,  or  Lady-cross. 
She  had  become  a  dignified,  handsome  matron, 
worthy  of  all  the  honor  she  received  in  this  house- 
hold of  fifty  souls.  Her  children  and  grandchil- 
dren were  now  about  her,  and  she  seemed  a  real 
queen  among  them. 

She  had  learned  to  read.  Some  time  before 
this,  her  son  Marderose,  who  had  been  to  hear  the 
Protestant  preacher,  brought  home  a  primer,  and 
urged  his  mother  to  take  lessons. 

"  I  have  a  large  family  to  care  for,"  she  said, 
"and  I  cannot  find  time." 

Marderose  replied,  "  You  must,  mother ;  we  will 
help  you,"  referring  to  his  younger  brothers,  who 
had  also  learned. 

They  united  their  entreaties  with  his,  and  gave 
the  mother  no  chance  for  excuse.  They  would 
bring  the  primer  and  hold  it  before  her  till  she  had 
actually  learned  the  letters,  and  then  her  own  inter- 
est >vas  so  awakened  that  she  needed  but  little  aid. 
She  had  such  a  desire  to  learn  that  she  kept  the 
book  beside  her,  whatever  she  was  doing,  and  hur- 
ried through  her  work  that  she  might  gain  time  for 
study.  She  kept  it  under  her  cushion  when  she 
was  making  bread  at  their  baking-bees,  where  they  ' 

Daughterd  of  Aimuuia.  1 6 


122 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


are  accustomed  to  bake  bread  enough  for  a  month ; 
and  when  she  got  ahead  a  little  in  the  process, 
would  pull  it  out  and  spell  bread,,  or  some  other 
word.  She  was  greatly  pleased  when  she  could 
make  out  a  word. 

I  shall  never  forget  how  she  looked  the  first 
time  I  saw  her  in  church  with  her  hymn-book  in 
her  hand.  She  did  not  go  for  a  long  time  to  the 
Protestant  church,  though  her  husband  and  sons 
attended  regularly.  She  went  still  to  the  old  church 
with  the  wife  of  Boghos,  who  was  quite  an  invalid, 
and  had  for  years  given  the  control  of  the  house 
into  Hackhatoon's  care. 

Her  sons  were  delighted  with  Krekore,  who  was 
then  only  a  preacher  in  the  village.  They  would 
tell  her  of  his  sweet  words,  and  won  her  before  she 
was  conscious  of  it.  She  wanted  to  go  to  hear 
him,  but  there  was  Boghos ;  would  he  not  be  an- 
gry }  He  had  said  he  would  beat  his  own  wife  if 
she  dared  to  go  near  "  those  Protes."  Boghos  had 
always  been  kind  to  her  Gulaser's  wife,  and  she 
did  not  like  to  displease  him.  His  shop  was  on 
the  street  by  which  she  must  go  to  the  chapel,  and 
he  would  surely  know  if  she  went. 

But  she  did  not  give  up  the  thought  of  going, 
and  one  day  she  crept  along  under  the  wall  in  front 


GULASER'S  HOUSEHOLD.  123 


of  Boglios'  shop,  and  entered  the  chapel.  She  was 
deeply  interested  in  the  earnest  words  of  the 
preacher,  and  "  from  that  time,"  said  she,  "  I  could 
not  stay  away."  Boghos,  if  he  knew  of  her  going, 
said  nothing  about  it,  and  his  wife  finally  overcame 
her  fears,  and  went  with  Hach-hatoon  to  an  evening 
service.  When  she  opened  the  chapel-door  to  come 
home,  she  met  her  husband  face  to  face.  In  telling 
the  story  afterwards,  she  said,  I  trembled  all  over. 
I  knew  I  deserved  a  beating  for  my  disobedience, 
and  believed  I  should  get  it.  But  when  he  came 
home,  he  took  my  hands,  looked  at  me,  and  said, 
'  Yeghesa,  did  I  not  tell  you  I  would  beat  you  if 
you  ever  dared  go  to  that  place  Then  he  drop- 
ped my  hands  and  pleasantly  said,  '  I  wont  beat 
you,  Yeghesa.'  He  too  had  been  listening  to  Kre- 
kore's  preaching,  and  was  convinced  of  its  truth." 
The  four,  Boghos  and  Gulaser  with  their  wives,  are 
now  members  of  the  Ichmeh  church,  together  with 
many  others  of  this  patriarchal  family.  Marderose, 
the  son,  is  one  of  the  deacons. 

The  history  of  this  family  is  a  beautiful  illustra- 
tion of  the  words  of  Jesus.  "The  kingdom  of 
heaven  is  like  leaven  that  a  woman  took  and  hid  in 
three  measures  of  meal,  till  the  whole  was  leaven- 
ed."   Only  it  was  some  little  boys  who  took  the 


124         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

leaven,  in  this  instance,  and  hid  it  in  their  mother's 
heart.  They  heard  the  truth,  and  loving  their 
mother  dearly,  they  wanted  her  to  know  about  the 
precious  treasure  they  had  found.  They  won  her 
first  by  their  affectionate  earnestness,  and  when 
the  truth  entered  her  heart,  it  made  her  so  much 
more  lovely  that  others  about  her  were  won,  and 
thus  it  spread  in  the  family  until  the  rest  of  the 
adults  were  reached  by  it. 

Some  of  the  members  of  this  household  would 
be  ornaments  in  any  church.  There  is  a  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  in  Ichmeh,  which  is 
composed  largely  of  the  young  men  of  this  ex- 
tremely interesting  family.  When  the  missiona- 
ries go  to  Ichmeh,  the  house  of  Boghos  and  Gula- 
ser  is  always  open  to  receive  them,  and  the  good 
women  there  are  ever  ready  to  minister  to  their 
wants.  God  has  blessed  them  too  in  their  basket 
and  store,  for  these  people  are  prospering  in  busi- 
ness, and  are  loved  and  honored  by  all  who  know 
them.  It  is  an  honorable  mention  of  one,  when  in- 
troduced, to  have  it  said,  "  This  person  is  from  the 
Gulaser  house." 

By  this  story  I  have  told  you,  dear  young 
friends,  you  see  how  much  you  are  doing,  when  by 
your  efforts  at  home  you  are  raising  the  money  to 


GAL  USER'S  HO  USE  HOLD.  125 

pay  for  teachers,  preachers,  and  books,  and  by  these 
means  are  hiding  the  leaven  of  truth  in  these  far-off 
and  benighted  lands.  And  the  boys  and  girls  in 
America  may  learn  from  this  story  of  little  Mar- 
derose  and  his  brothers,  what  they  can  do  in  their 
own  homes  and  neighborhoods,  if  they  have  the 
love  of  Jesus  in  their  hearts. 

But  by  this  time  you  will  be  ready  to  hear  some- 
thing of  our  visit. 

At  eight  o'clock  they  sent  for  us,  and  when  we 
reached  the  house  we  were  seated  by  the  kusa,  a 
frame  like  a  low  table,  with  a  thick  rug  thrown 
over  it.  A  pot  of  coals  was  placed  under  the  frame, 
which  was  lined  with  tin.  This  was  their  heating 
apparatus.  We  sat  on  the  cushions  near  the  wall, 
with  cushions  at  our  backs,  and  were  invited  to 
put  our  feet  under  the  frame,  as  you  would  under 
a  table,  and  the  rug  was  thrown  over  them.  We 
were  soon  very  comfortable;  it  was  like  sitting 
over  a  register. 

The  food  was  served  on  the  usual  cojoper  table 
on  the  top  of  the  kusa  ;  and  was  the  nicest  repast  I 
ever  had  enjoyed  in  that  region.  But  I  will  not 
stop  to  describe  it,  as  I  have  spent  so  much  time  in 
telling  you  about  the  family.  Breakfast  being  over, 
the  table  was  removed  by  the  younger  members  of 


126         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


the  household,  who  were  in  attendance.  The  older 
women  then  came  in,  and  all  sat  down,  while  Hach- 
hatoon  brought  the  Bible,  and  several  hymn-books. 
Pastor  Krekore  was  invited  to  read,  and  lead  in 
prayer,  and  v/e  all  sung.  It  was  a  pleasant  service, 
and  when  it  was  concluded  we  continued  to  sing 
until  the  time  for  the  midday  female  prayer-meet- 
ing, and  I  went  with  the  women  to  the  chapel, 
where  nearly  a  hundred  of  the  sisters  had  gathered 
at  the  sound  of  the  wooden  bell.  Some  doubtless 
came  on  that  occasion  because  they  knew  that  I 
would  be  there,  but  this  meeting  is  generally  well 
attended.  Marta,  the  pastor's  wife,  being  an  invalid 
cannot  conduct  it,  and  sometimes  the  pastor  takes 
charge,  but  usually  it  is  left  in  the  care  of  Hackha- 
toon,  and  her  husband's  sister  Loosig,  who  is  also  a 
faithful  worker  in  the  village.  Markareed,  also,  who 
was  now  confined  to  her  home  with  a  lame  foot,  has 
taken  an  important  part  in  the  work  among  the 
women  of  Ichmeh. 

Most  of  the  women  had  their  hymn-books  ready 
to  open  to  the  hymn,  and  what  is  better,  they  all 
joined  in  the  singing.  Every  head  was  bowed  at 
the  opening  prayer,  and  one  could  hardly  help  feel- 
ing it  to  be  a  privilege  to  unite  with  such  worship- 
pers at  a  throne  of  grace. 


GAL  USER'S  HOUSEHOLD.  127 

Mariam,  the  Bible-woman,  read  the  story  of  the 
Prodigal  Son,  and  asked  me  to  explain  it.  We  talk- 
ed about  it  for  a  few  minutes,  and  then  one  after 
another  led  in  prayer,  asking  blessings  for  them- 
selves, and  that  the  kind  Heavenly  Father  would 
bring  back  every  wandering  child.  Their  prayers 
are  earnest  and  simple.  They  go  to  God  as  the  lit- 
tle child  goes  to  its  mother,  when  hungry,  and  asks 
for  something  to  eat.  I  have  often  felt  that  they 
were  more  acceptable  than  mine,  and  I  could  tell 
you  many  cases  where  answers  to  their  requests 
seemed  very  direct,  Sometimes  we,  who  have  been 
their  teachers,  sit  at  their  feet  as  learners. 

At  the  close  of  the  prayer-meeting  the  animals 
were  brought,  and  we  started  for  the  village  of  Ha- 
boosie. 


128        DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


CHAPTER  Xlll. 

THE  TOUR  CONTINUED  AND  ENDED. 

The  earnest  pastor  Garabed  and  his  wife  Ba- 
dashan  were  training  their  church  in  Haboosie  to 
be  one  of  the  most  spiritual  in  our  field.  We  en- 
joyed the  evening  service  in  the  large  and  well- 
filled  chapel,  and  the  women's  prayer-meeting  the 
next  morning,  at  which  a  good  number  of  the  sis- 
ters were  present. 

They  were  very  glad  to  see  me,  and  wished  we 
could  visit  them  oftener.  I  reminded  them  of  the 
hundreds  of  villages  we  had  to  visit,  and  of  the  work 
w^e  had  to  do  in  the  city  in  educating  the  teachers 
and  preachers  needed  for  all.  We  had  given  them 
good  pastor  Garabed  and  his  wife,  who  were  doing 
better  for  them  than  we  could. 

I  was  glad  to  find  them  making  so  much  effort 
to  read  the  Bible.  One  woman  with  a  sour  face 
said.  "  You  at  the  city  have  nothing  to  do ;  you  can 
read  all  you  wish  ;"  but  a  pleasant  faced  sister  in- 
stantly exclaimed,  in  a  reproving  tone,  "  Soos !" 
(Silence  !)  "  do  you  not  know  that  these  hanums  do 
a  great  deal  more  work  than  we  do  ?" 


THE  TOUR  CONTINUED. 


129 


After  the  early  prayer-meeting  I  asked  Bada- 
shan  when  we  could  call  on  the  women.  "  As  soon 
as  the  smoke  rises,"  she  replied.  And  certainly  it 
was  desirable  that  their  close,  dingy  rooms  should 
be  cleared  of  smoke  before  we  attempted  to  visit 
them. 

We  went  to  the  most  distant  part  of  the  village 
first  that  we  might  gain  time.  We  found  the 
women  all  loved  the  pastor,  and  his  wife,  and  it 
was  evident  that  Badashan  was  a  true  helpmate  to 
her  husband.  They  gave  her  a  position  above 
them,  and  she  used  this  position  for  their  good. 
She  was  their  Bible-woman,  their  leader  in  the 
prayer-meetings,  and  in  their  homes,  for  she  was  a 
model  housekeeper.  Garabed  was  earnest,  but  very 
dignified,  seldom  forgetting  his  cane  when  he  went 
abroad  ;  and  his  people  were  pleased  with  this. 
But  Badashan  would  take  her  clean  baby  on  her 
arm,  and  a  bowl  of  soup  in  her  hand,  and  go  to  some 
sick  neighbor  with  her  bright  face  all  radiant  with 
smiles.  In  her  eagerness  to  make  somebody  happy 
she  seemed  to  forget  that  she  was  the  pastoress. 
She  had  a  sunny  face,  and  wherever  she  went  scat- 
tered pearls,  which  no  one  thought  of  trampling, 
but  only  of  gathering  as  precious  treasure. 

"  Here,  is  a  house  you  must  visit,  hanum,"  she 

Daugliters  of  Armenia.  I  -I 


I30         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


said.  "  It  is  the  home  of  Deacon  Hagop,  but  one 
of  the  women  here  is  very  bitter.  She  is  always 
talking  against  the  Protestants,  and  does  much 
harm,  as  she  is  a  talented  woman." 

We  went  in  through  a  long,  dark  entrance.  It 
seemed  to  me  very  long.  Not  a  ray  of  light  pierced 
the  gloom,  and  the  floor  was  so  uneven  that  I 
feared  to  fall  at  every  step.  But  Badashan  knew 
the  way,  and  gave  me  her  hand  to  guide  me. 
When  we  reached  the  family-room,  we  found  it 
large,  and  very  neat  for  a  village-room.  The  smoke 
was  still  clinging  to  the  corners,  and  in  the  top  of 
the  apartment,  but  did  not  trouble  us.  A  large, 
resolute-looking  woman  arose,  and  gave  us  the 
usual  salutations,  and  invited  us  to  sit  by  the  fire- 
place. We  were  cold,  for  it  was  late  in  November, 
and  the  mountains  about  us  were  white  with  snow. 
She  uncovered  the  hole  in  the  floor  and  said,  Put 
your  feet  inside,  hanum."  I  obeyed,  more  to  please 
her  than  myself,  for  it  seemed  like  putting  my  feet 
into  a  hot  well.  The  hot  air  was  fragrant  with  the 
food  cooking  inside,  which  reminded  me  that  Esau's 
savory  dish  for  his  blind  father  was  probably 
cooked  in  much  the  same  way. 

By  the  time  I  was  thoroughly  warm,  all  the 
brides  of  the  household  of  forty  souls,  had  gathered 


THE  TOUR  CONTINUED. 


around,  and  given  us  the  salutations,  but  none  of 
them  sat  down,  except  the  one  who  first  received 
us,  who  was  evidently  the  wife  of  the  patriarch  of 
this  Oriental  home. 

"  I  presume  you  all  know  how  to  read,  as  this 
is  the  house  of  Deacon  Hagop,"  I  said. 

This  was  just  the  question  my  hostess  was 
waiting  for.  It  gave  her  an  opportunity  to  say  just 
what  she  thought  of  the  "  Protes,"  and  with  sarcas- 
tic vehemence  she  piled  abuse  on  abuse,  till  she 
had  exhausted  herself  and  the  language. 

I  then  quietly  remarked,  "  Sister,  I  wish  you 
would  become  a  Protestant,  and  teach  us  how  to 
live." 

This  was  very  unexpected  to  her.  She  thought 
I  would  defend  the  Protestants ;  and  then  she 
would  have  a  chance  for  argument.  She  threw 
up  her  arms,  leaned  back  against  the  wall,  and 
laughed  heartily,  exclaiming,  "  You  are  a  strange 
woman,  hanum !  I  never  saw  such  a  Prote  before." 
Then,  calling  to  the  other  women,  she  said,  "Bring 
out  the  table  ;  this  woman  must  have  some  break- 
fast." 

A  little  wooden  table,  almost  as  black  as  the 
smoky  walls,  was  forthwith  brought,  and  placed 
near  me,  and  nice  fresh  bread,  butter  and  honey, 


132 


DA  UGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


with  some  milk,  dried  cream  and  cheese,  were  placed 
upon  it.  Then  she  went  to  the  fire-hole,  and  took 
out  a  covered  earthen  pot,  from  which,  with  a  wood- 
en ladle,  she  dipped  out  a  large  copper  dish  full  of 
soup,  and  placing  it  in  the  centre  of  the  table,  in- 
vited us  to  begin. 

"  But  shall  we  not  have  a  blessing  V 

"  Certainly." 

I  motioned  to  Badashan,  and  she,  with  much 
fervor,  asked  the  Divine  blessing. 

Wooden  spoons  were  handed  us,  and  we  all  be- 
gan to  dip  into  the  centre  dish,  which  sent  forth 
the  same  appetizing  odor  that  greeted  me  while  I 
was  warming  my  feet.  I  was  so  impolite  as  to  ask 
what  this  nice  soup  was  made  of,  and  the  lady, 
seemingly  complimented  by  my  question,  replied 
that  it  was  made  of  little  watermelons.  It  was 
equal  to  the  best  French  vegetable  soup  I  ever 
tasted,  and  I  enjoyed  it  highly.  I  was  very  hun- 
gry, as  I  had  gone  nine  hours  without  eating, 
and  made  a  good  breakfast,  or  dinner,  as  I  might 
as  well  call  it.  Our  hostess  seemed  greatly  pleased 
to  see  me  eat  so  heartily,  and  to  have  me  praise 
her  food,  and  turning  to  me,  she  said  laughingly, 
"  You  like  our  food,  and  do  not  defend  the  Protes." 

"We  hold  up  Christ  as  a  pattern,  not  the  Prot- 


THE  TOUR  CONTINUED. 


133 


testants,"  I  replied.  "  He  only  is  the  perfect  ex- 
ample, and  it  is  always  safe  to  follow  him.  The 
Protestants  are  imperfect,  because  they  fail  in  like- 
ness to  Christ.  It  will  do  you  no  good  to  look  at 
them,  sister.  Read  the  Bible  for  yourself,  and  live 
as  Christ  wishes  you  to,  and  then  you  will  pity 
those  Protestants  who  seem  so  imperfect  to  you. 
God  has  given  you  a  bright  mind ;  what  will  you 
say  when  he  calls  you  to  give  an  account Is  it 
wise  to  starve  your  soul,  by  feeding  it  on  the  husks 
of  other  people's  faults  T 

I  felt  that  I  had  won  that  woman  to  my  side, 
that  is,  she  became  my  friend,  but  she  did  not  ac- 
cept Christ.  She  listened  while  we  read  and  prayed, 
and  was  much  softened,  but  I  have  not  yet  learned 
of  her  becoming  a  true  Christian.  She  had  a  very 
proud  heart  that  kept  her  from  yielding  to  the  Sav- 
iour. And  though  she  could  not  read,  she  had  a 
pride  of  intellect,  as  I  might  express  it,  or  a  feeling 
of  superiority  over  her  neighbors  in  the  village, 
which  was  a  still  greater  obstacle.  But  I  still  hope 
to  hear  that  she  has  found  her  perfect  ideal  in 
Christ,  and,  accepting  him,  has  become  all  she 
thinks  others  ought  to  be.  I  shall  never  cease  to 
be  interested  in  her,  and  in  the  thousands  of  Ar- 
menia's daughters,  who,  if  blest  with  a  Christian 


134 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


education,  would  fill  the  highest  positions  of  woman- 
hood with  dignity  and  grace. 

An  hour's  ride  from  Haboosie,  the  next  day, 
brought  us  to  the  little  village  of  Aghansi,  where 
the  preacher  Hagop,  and  Eva,  his  neat  sensible 
wife,  were  laying  the  foundations  of  a  Christian 
civilization,  in  a  very  quiet  but  effectual  manner. 

There  was  little  to  encourage  them  when  they 
began  in  this  dark,  rude  village.  Not  a  house  could 
be  found  really  fit  to  live  in.  Yet  these  good  peo- 
ple joyfully  settled  themselves  in  the  room  pro- 
vided, which  was  to  be  chapel,  schoolhouse  and 
dwelling.  The  villagers  looked  up  to  them  as  a 
higher  class  of  beings,  and  came  in  from  curiosity 
to  see  them,  and  hear  them  read  and  talk  about  the 
new  Bible  they  had  brought.  Their  neatness,  their 
intelligence,  and  their  piety  won  the  people.  They 
saw  and  felt  the  contrast  between  the  home  of 
Hagop  and  Eva  and  their  own ;  yet  they  knew 
that  the  preacher  and  his  wife  were  not  foreigners 
like  the  missionaries,  but  were  villagers  like  them- 
selves. Whence  then  the  difference }  Ah,  they 
had  been  at  the  schools  in  Harpoot,  and  had  there 
learned  all  these  new  things. 

It  was  of  little  use  for  the  priest  to  curse  those 
who  went  to  hear  these  "  Protes for  they  would 


THE  TOUR  CONTINUED.  135 

go.  Among  them  was  a  carpenter,  who,  when  he 
had  heard,  gladly  received  the  truth  into  his  heart, 
and  acted  it  out  in  his  life. 

"  We  must  have  a  larger  room  for  our  chapel," 
said  he,  "  and  our  preacher  and  his  wife  cannot  see 
in  that  hole  of  a  place.  We  must  do  something." 
He  knew  that  the  Protestants  in  the  village  were 
few  and  poor,  but  with  the  promise  of  a  little  help 
he  went  to  work. 

The  villagers  had  no  money  to  give,  but  they 
promised  work.  They  could  make  the  brick,  sift 
the  dirt,  and  help  in  other  ways.  The  missionaries 
supplied  a  little  needed  money.  The  carpenter 
worked  every  spare  moment,  often  going  in  the 
night  to  another  village  to  bring  lumber,  because 
he  wanted  all  the  daylight  for  building. 

At  the  time  I  was  there  the  chapel  was  so  far 
finished  that  they  could  worship  in  it ;  and  Hagop 
and  Eva  were  living  in  the  prophet's  chamber  on 
its  side.  The  carpenter  had  put  up  this  room  for 
them,  and  a  small  kitchen,  perhaps  ten  feet  square, 
next  to  it.  It  was  to  this  dwelling  that  we  went 
when  we  came  into  the  village  at  this  time.  We 
had  no  trouble  in  finding  it,  as  it  was  the  only  new 
house  in  the  place. 

Hagop  saw  us  coming,  and  came  to  meet  us. 


136         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

I  followed  him  up  the  ladder-like  steps,  and  found 
Eva  standing  in  the  door  to  greet  me.  She  looked 
pretty  in  her  neat,  but  patched  dress,  her  hair  nice- 
ly braided,  and  a  small  black  handkerchief  tied 
gracefully  over  her  head.  Her  face  was  all  smiles 
as  she  led  me  into  her  little  home — the  only  home, 
I  might  say,  in  the  village. 

Let  me  give  you  my  impressions  by  telling  you 
what  Hohannes,  a  young  man  of  the  village,  said 
about  it.  He  came  in  to  see  us  in  the  evening. 
He  sat  near  the  door,  and  after  I  had  ceased  talk- 
ing with  him,  he  leaned  his  face  upon  his  hands 
and  gazed  about  the  room.  I  knew  from  his  looks 
he  was  drinking  in  its  beauties ;  so  I  said,  "  Ho- 
hannes, this  seems  to  you  a  very  nice  place,  does  it 

not  r 

"  O  hanum,  it  is  like  a  palace  to  me ;  I  love  to 
come  here !" 

I  wish  every  person,  young  or  old,  who  has  had 
a  share  in  the  missionary  work,  could  have  seen 
him  as  he  said  these  words,  and  then  could  have 
looked  with  us  about  the  room. 

The  walls  were  plastered  with  cleaiz  mud.  At 
one  end  was  the  window,  three  feet  by  four,  with 
one  small  pane  of  glass  in  the  centre,  to  look 
through,  the  rest  filled  with  oiled  paper,  to  let  in 


THE  TOUR  CONTINUED.     '  137 

the  light  and  keep  out  the  cold.  Opposite  the  win- 
dow was  the  door.  At  the  right,  as  we  entered, 
hung  a  rude  bookcase,  filled  with  books,  at  each 
side  a  small  picture,  and  under  the  bookcase  a 
calico-case  for  thread  and  thimble,  made  by  some 
little  girl  in  America,  and  given  to  Eva  by  a  mis- 
sionary lady,  while  she  was  at  school  at  Harpoot. 
The  mud-floor  was  covered  with  coarse  matting 
made  of  reeds,  with  some  pieces  of  Koordish  car- 
peting spread  at  the  sides  to  sit  upon.  There 
was  one  cushion  in  the  corner,  at  the  right  of  the 
window,  and  I  was  invited  to  sit  on  that,  while  Eva 
brought  another  for  my  back.  The  bedding,  nicely 
folded  and  covered  with  a  coarse  cloth,  was  piled 
in  another  corner,  and  the  cushion  for  my  back 
came  from  that.  This  was  the  palace-home  that 
thrilled  the  heart  of  Hohannes,  and  covered  the 
face  of  Eva  with  smiles.  And  it  was  a  real  home, 
such  as  we  are  trying  to  plant  all  over  the  plains  of 
Armenia,  and  to  the  very  tops  of  old  Taurus. 

How  I  wish  that  thousands  who  live  in  real 
palaces,  and  travel  in  palace-cars,  could  once  visit 
this,  and  then  the  home  of  the  carpenter  who  built 
it,  with  its  black  sides,  the  cattle  separated  from 
the  sittingroom  by  only  a  low  wall,  and  hear  him, 

when  he  said  to  the  missionary,    Would  that  it 

18 


138         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


Vv-ere  not  necessary  to  take  this  money ;  but  I  have 
done  all  I  could,  badvellie."  I  think  they  would  feel 
as  I  did,  that  this  poor  carpenter  resembled  his 
Master,  the  carpenter  of  Nazareth,  and  perhaps  will 
have  a  higher  position  in  the  palace  of  the  King  of 
kings,  than  some  of  us  who  dwell  in  ceiled  houses 
and  have  many  luxuries. 

Woman's  share  in  the  work  to  be  done  in  these 
villages  was  evident  here.  Hagop  preached  the 
gospel,  but  Eva  and  her  well-kept  home  were  need- 
ed to  illustrate  and  enforce  it. 

The  room  was  too  small  for  me  to  put  up  my 
bedstead,  and  leave  others  room  to  lie  down.  So 
Garabed  took  my  shawl  and  with  Hagop's  help, 
soon  separated  space  enough  for  me,  and  spread 
my  quilt  upon  the  reed  carpet.  Eva  tucked  me 
nicely  in,  and  although  the  bed  was  hard  I  was 
soon  asleep. 

The  next  morning  Eva  had  a  chicken  nicely 
cooked  for  breakfast,  and  we  were  soon  after  on  our 
way  to  Harpoot  after  a  tour  of  nine  days.  We 
Avere  six  hours  on  the  road,  and  the  piercing  north 
wind  chilled  me  through  before  I  reached  home. 
Garabed  v^-as  very  thoughtful,  alighting  several 
times  to  put  extra  wraps  around  me,  but  it  is  not 
easy  to  keep  warm  on  horseback,  facing  a  cold  wind. 


THE  TOUR  CONTINUED, 


39 


"  O  mamma,"  exclaimed  Susie,  "  how  well  I  re- 
member the  day  you  came  home.  It  was  so  cold 
that  the  plants  all  froze  the  night  before,  and  in 
the  morning  papa  came  in  and  said,  '  Mamma  will 
be  very  cold ;  Mariam,  you  must  keep  a  good  fire 
in  the  stove.' " 

Yes,  and  I  remember  well  how  Susie  and  all 
the  rest  of  the  dear  ones  looked  when  I  arrived. 
It  seemed  as  though  I  had  been  gone  nineteen  in- 
stead of  nine  days,  and  when  I  entered  our  cheer- 
ful sittingroom,  I  thought  of  Hohannes,  and  won- 
dered what  he  would  say  if  he  could  see  that. 
Before  I  had  taken  off  my  wraps,  a  villager  came 
in,  and  papa  told  him  that  I  had  been  away  on  a 
tour  to  the  villages.  He  looked  at  me  with  won- 
der, and  said,  "  Hanum,  how  can  you  go  to  our 
dirty  homes  Your  home  is  so  light  and  beautiful, 
and  ours  are  dark  and  filthy.  We  wonder  that  you 
ever  go  to  the  villages ;  surely  it  is  not  to  please 
yourselves.  Your  religion  must  be  different  from 
ours."  He  reminded  me  of  a  woman  from  Karun- 
gerd,  who  once  came  to  our  house.  When  she 
came  in  she  took  up  one  of  the  children's  toys,  and 
looking  round  the  room,  said,  "  Hanum,  is  this 
heaven 

I  told  him  we  had  come  because  we  wished  just 


I40         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

such  homes  as  ours  to  spring  up  in  every  part  of 
the  land — homes  where  Christ  is  loved  and  trusted 
and  obeyed,  as  their  best  Friend  ;  but  they  could 
not  have  them,  while  the  poor  women  were  forbid- 
den to  read,  and  were  treated  as  slaves,  or,  at  best, 
as  children. 

"Yes,  yes,  hanum,"  he  said,  "education  is  a 
good  thing." 

"  Have  you  a  wife,  brother  ?"  I  asked. 

"  Yes ;  but  my  father  will  not  permit  her  to 
read.  He  has  turned  me  out  of  doors  because  I 
will  go  to  hear  the  Protestant  preacher.  He  says 
that  if  I  will  go  after  the  Protes,  I  may  starve ;  he 
will  not  feed  me ;  and  I  have  come  to  the  city  for 
work." 

He  listened  very  earnestly  when  I  told  him  that 
the  Bible  would  bring  all  these  blessings  which  we 
enjoy  to  their- nation,  and  that  he  must  not  be  dis- 
heartened, even  if  called  to  endure  persecution  for 
Christ's  sake,  for  Christ  himself  has  said,  "  In  the 
world  ye  shall  have  tribulation:  but  be  of-  good 
cheer ;  I  have  overcome  the  world." 

The  missionary  experience  of  these  few  days 
was  to  me  very  pleasant.  I  would  not  have  it  blot- 
ted out  from  my  life  there  for  any  consideration. 
We  called  it  the  "  romance  of  missionary  life,"  but 


THE  TOUR  CONTINUED. 


141 


there  was  much  stern  reality  mingled  with  it ;  yet 
notwithstanding  the  hardships  and  fatigue,  I  en- 
joyed and  learned  much.  At  other  times  we  went 
to  more  distant  and  larger  places,  and,  did  time  and 
space  allow,  I  would  like  to  relate  to  my  young 
readers  the  incidents  of  a  month  spent  in  Malatia, 
a  longer  time  in  Diarbekir,  and,  among  others,  of  a 
visit  to  the  KasabaJi,  or  capital  of  the  district  of 
Geghi,  five  days'  journey  northeast  from  Harpoot. 
In  some  of  these  tours  there  was  even  more  ro- 
mance than  in  this,  but  that  soon  disappeared  amid 
the  hard,  trying  work  to  be  done  in  all  these  places. 
But  we  always  felt  that  the  Master  called  us  to  go, 
and  went  with  us  ;  and  we  were  safe  and  happy  in 
his  blessed  companionship.  Some  turned  a  deaf 
ear  to  our  message ;  others  listened  and  were 
saved. 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

DOES  IT  PA  VP 

This  is  just  what  Susie  asked  me  as  we  con- 
cluded our  last  talk.  "  How  could  you  leave  your 
friends,  and  this  pleasant  home-land,  mamma,  to  be 
a  missionary  ?    Does  it  pay  r 

Others  have  asked  the  same  question  in  the 
Old  World  and  the  New,  and  I  would  like  to  an- 
swer it  here. 

It  does  pay.  Soul-saving  is  a  noble  work,  so  great 
that  the  Son  of  God  said  to  his  Father,  "  Send  me ; 
I  will  give  my  life  for  that  lost  world."  He  knew 
all  the  sorrows,  the  trials  and  temptations  that 
awaited  him  in  his  foreign  mission  work,  for  such 
indeed  it  was.  He  left  his  home  of  glory,  and  came 
to  this  far-off  world  to  save  us.  He  humbled  him- 
self and  became  a  little  child,  was  born  in  a  stable, 
lived  with  poor  Joseph  and  Mary,  and  worked  in 
the  little  shop  at  Nazareth  with  his  reputed  father, 
who  was  only  a  carpenter.  It  must  have  been  try- 
ing for  Jesus  to  spend  thirty  years  thus,  in  prepara- 
tion for  his  great  work,  but  if  we  ask  why  it  was 


DOES  IT  PA  V? 


143 


so,  we  have  but  the  one  answer,  "  It  was  his  Father's 
will;"  and  he  "for  the  joy  that  was  set  before  him 
endured  the  cross,  despising  the  shame."  And  the 
missionary  going  forth  to  his  work,  with  the  love 
of  Christ  in  his  heart,  -can  say  the  same.  It  would 
pay  to  leave  all  we  hold  dear  and  go  to  the  igno- 
rant and  degraded,  to  bring  up  a  people  to  a  higher 
civilization,  even  if  they  are  not  Christianized ;  but 
the  missionary  has  a  sight  of  the  souls  that  live  for 
ever,  and  works  not  for  time  but  for  eternity. 

When  the  young  teacher  from  Franklin,  Mas- 
sachusetts, left  her  mother  and  sister  to  labor  but 
a  few  years  in  Armenia,  and  then  to  die  far  away 
from  the  home  of  her  youth,  and  be  buried  among 
strangers  with  not  one  of  her  kindred  to  follow  her 
to  that  silent  grave  on  the  hillside,  did  it  pay  ? 
True,  loving,  gentle  hands  were  not  wanting  to 
minister  to  "  our  sunny  May,"  as  we  called  her, 
though  mother  and  sister  were  not  there.  But 
when  we  saw  the  daughters  of  Armenia  weeping 
around  her  lifeless  form,  telling  of  her  youth,  her 
sweetness,  and  her  consecration  to  the  Master 
whom  she  had  taught  them  to  love,  we  felt  sure 
that  it  paid.  Come  to  the  place  of  prayer  and  hear 
these  same  loving  friends  :  "  Lord,  bless  the  stricken 
mother  far  over  the  sea,  who  gave  her  loved  daugh- 


DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


ter  to  labor  for  strangers  whom  she  knew  not, 
because  she  loved  thee." 

The  missionary  work  is  very  trying.  The  mis- 
sionary mother  sending  her  children  to  the  home 
land  for  education,  may  suffer  more  even  than  she 
who  sends  her  dear  ones  to  the  foreign  field.  The 
latter  go,  at  mature  age,  and,  we  might  say,  beyond 
the  reach  of  harmful  influences  ;  the  former,  left 
at  the  tenderest  age  with  strangers,  often  fail  to 
receive  the  sympathy  and  watchful  care  they  so 
much  need  when  exposed  to  temptations,  tried  and 
perhaps  sick.  A  mother  was  greatly  comforted 
once,  whose  dear  one  was  sick  in  America,  by  the 
simple,  child-like  prayers  of  these  poor  Armenian 
women.  "  Lord,  bless  the  sick  child  in  the  far-off 
land,  and  make  her  well,  because  the  mother  stops 
here  to  labor  for  us."  And  the  Lord  hearkened 
and  heard,  and  sent  healing  mercy,  when  the  phy- 
sicians had  said,  "There  is  no  hope." 

It  is  very  hard  for  both  parents  and  children  to 
be  thus  separated,  but  I  think  our  Heavenly  Father 
gives  such  parents  special  grace  to  give  up  their 
children,  and  watches  over  the  children  we  do  be- 
lieve with  tenderest  care.  Such  children  usually 
become  Christians  at  an  early  age.  They  have 
trials  peculiar  to  themselves,  but  these  are  over- 


DOES  IT  FAY?  145 

ruled  for  their  good,  and  doubtless  make  them 
stronger  men  and  women.  I  believe  that  if  God 
calls  us  to  do  a  special  work,  he  will  help  us  do  that 
work.  If,  in  doing  it,  we  must  be  parted  from  our 
children,  he  will  care  for  them,  and  will  raise  up 
frierids  to  love  and  counsel  them  ;  and  more,  he 
will  furnish  the  means  to  educate  these  children. 
Our  loved  ones  may  not  have  all  they  wish  for,  but 
they  will  have  what  is  best  for  them. 

I  felt  this  very  deeply,  when,  a  few  weeks  since, 
I  visited  an  asylum  for  inebriates,  and  was  told 
that  most  of  its  inmates  were  the  sons  of  wealthy 
parents.  I  thought  the  poor  ministers  and  mis- 
sionaries who  are  practising  self-denial  to  keep 
their  sons  and  daughters  at  school  or  college,  were 
much  better  off  even  in  this  Jife;  and  our  Saviour 
speaks  of  an  eternal  reward  that  awaits  those  who 
leave  all  for  him.  These  missionaries  and  minis- 
ters might  have  been  wealthy  also  if  they  had  not 
chosen  the  life  of  self-denial  for  Christ ;  and  then 
how  would  it  have  been  with  their  children 

I  would  not  imply  that  it  is  wrong  to  be  rich ; 
but  I  wish  every  rich  man  could  feel  as  Pilibose,  a 
stone-cutter  in  Harpoot,  did,  who  came  to  one  of  the 
missionaries  with  a  glowing  face,  saying,  "  Badvellie, 
I  used  to  have  great  trouble  in  my  business ;  but 

Daughters  of  Aimenia.  I Q 


146     .    DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


now  I  have  made  Jesus  my  partner,  and  I  have  no 
trouble."  It  would  be  well  for  all  to  have  Jesus 
for  a  partner.  He  will  help  the  poor  in  their  self- 
denials,  and  the  rich  in  their  many  temptations. 

There  is  another  reason,  mamma,"  says  Susie, 
"  why  the  missionary  work  must  be  very  trying. 
Do  you  not  remember  the  gentleman  on  the  steam- 
er asked  you  how  an  educated  lady  could  live 
among  such  ignorant  people  T 

Yes,  and  he  is  not  the  only  one  who  has  asked 
that  question  ;  and  yet  that  same  gentleman  would 
go  to  the  gold  mines  with  rude  and  wicked  people, 
and  sleep  night  after  night  in  a  hovel,  for  the  sake 
of  the  shining  dust  he  might  bring  home.  He 
would  leave  wife  and  children  and  refined  society, 
for  the  sake  of  worldly  gain,  or  he  would  stand 
behind  a  counter  day  after  day,  and  deal  with  the 
lowest  and  most  degraded  in  our  cities  for  money. 
We  must  have  men  to  dig  the  gold,  and  men  to 
stand  behind  the  counter  in  all  right  kinds  of  busi- 
ness, and  we  must  have  missionaries  ;  but  if  I  must 
be  judge,  I  should  say  the  real  self-denial  is  on  the 
side  of  the  first.  The  missionary's  work  is  noble, 
soul-inspiring,  and  makes  a  nobleman  of  him  in 
this  life,  and  then  he  carries  his  treasures  with  him 
into  eternity.    He  is  scattering  blessings  broadcast 


DOES  IT  FAY ^  147 

in  the  world,  which  bring  him  in  a  harvest  of  joy, 
for  Jesus  says  not  a  cup  of  cold  water  given  in  the 
name  of  a  disciple  shall  lose  its  reward.  And  then 
if  he  is  instrumental  in  saving  one  soul,  that  one 
may  save  another,  and  so  the  work  goes  on ;  and 
all  these  souls  he  will  find  at  last  in  his  Father's 
house  in  heaven.  It  is  true  that  all  our  daily  busi- 
ness, if  done  with,  an  eye  single  to  the  glory  of  God, 
will  be  rewarded ;  but  to  lead  souls  to  Christ  will 
ever  be  our  noblest  work  on  earth,  and  will  be 
crowned  with  the  highest  and  best  recompense. 

It  is  moreover  trying,  to  go  to  a  strange  land, 
and  live  among  a  people  with  a  strange  language, 
and  strange  habits  and  customs.  We  often  feel 
bound  on  four  sides,"  as  the  Armenians  say,  but 
then  is  the  time  to  look  up.  When  difficulties 
thicken,  and  we  are  tempted  to  think  we  may  have 
taken  the  wrong  path,  w^e  pull  out  our  "  marching 
orders,"  and  hear  the  Master  say,  "  Go  ye  into  all 
the  world  and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature," 
and  "  Lo,  I  am  with  you  alway,  even  unto  the  end 
of  the  world." 

It  is  trying  to  be  called  "  Satan,"  "  the  Evil 
One,"  "  a  leather  face,"  "  a  leper,"  "  a  wolf  in  sheep's 
clothing;"  but  we  read,  "If  they  have  called  the 
master  of  the  house  Beelzebub,  how  much  more 


148         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


shall  they  call  them  of  his  household  ?"  It  is  hard 
to  be  stoned  by  a  mob  of  women,  to  whom  you  are 
trying  to  give  that  gospel  which  alone  can  bring 
them  up  from  their  degraded  condition.  It  is  hard 
to  have  a  crowd  of  women,  yelhng  and  shrieking, 
turn  you  out  of  doors  at  midnight,  with  nothing  to 
shelter  you  from  the  pitiless  November  storm 
among  the  mountains.  It  is  hard  to  have  a  woman 
drive  you  from  her  house,  crying,  "  You  shall  never 
read  that  Bible  here,  not  even  on  my  doorstep. 
Begone,  you  dividers  of  families,  you  bringers  of  a 
new  religion  !"  It  is  harder  still  to  have  those  for 
whom  you  have  faithfully  labored  tell  you  that  you 
shall  do  no  more  for  them,  and  perhaps  accuse  you 
of  taking  that  which  was  given  for  them.  But  the 
hardest  of  all  to  the  missionary  is  to  have  those 
who  once  bade  fair  to  be  earnest  workers  for  Jesus, 
turn  back,  and,  Judas-like,  betray  him. 

But  these  dark  clouds  all  have  a  silver  lining. 
Yes,  sometimes  the  lining  is  of  a  golden  hue,  it 
even  sparkles  like  the  diamond.  Among  these" 
strange  ones  comes  a  poor  woman  who  seizes  your 
hands,  and,  with  tears  flowing  fast  down  her  with- 
ered cheeks,  says,  "  Hanum,  teach  me  how  to  pray." 
She  has  been  to  Jerusalem  on  a  long  pilgrimage. 
She  will  tell  you  that  she  has  looked  into  the  Sav- 


DOES  IT  PAY? 


149  . 


viour's  sepulchre,  and  wept  as  Mary  did ;  that  she 
has  stood  on  Calvary's  mountain,  and  seen  the 
cross  upon  which  her  Saviour  died,  and  has  taken 
her  hard-earned  money  to  the  priest  to  have  a  tick- 
et to  heaven  printed  with  indehble  ink  upon  her 
arm.  The  image  of  Christ  upon  the  cross  has  been 
pricked  into  her  quivering  flesh,  to  teach  her  that 
her  Redeemer  has  suffered  for  her.  What  more 
could  this  heroic  woman  do  ?  Is  she  not '  safe  ? 
.She  thought  so.  Her  neighbors  looked  upon  her 
as  holy,  as  one  to  be  honored.  But  the  Bible  has 
been  read  in  her  home,  and  old  Haji  Anna  has  heard, 
"  Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart,  for  they  shall  see 
God."  She  had  not  found  him  who  could  purify 
the  heart.  The  missionary  has  the  golden  privi- 
lege of  leading  her  to  the  fountain  where  she  may 
wash  and  be  clean,  and  now  she  is  casting  her 
crown  at  His  feet  who  redeemed  her  with  his  pre- 
cious blood. 

Come  to  the  house  of  one  of  Christ's  little  ones 
and  hear  what  she  says,  when  a  sorrow  with  a 
gloom  darker  than  death  overshadows  her  home, 
and  rests  most  heavily  upon  her  manly  son,  whose 
wife  must  be  given  up  for  attempted  murder. 
"  Let  this  not  fall  on  Christ,  and  his  little  flock ; 
let  it  fall  on  me  and  my  father's  house."    Here  is 


I50         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

love  to  Christ's  cause  that  shines  above  the  love  of 
the  mother.  Does  it  not  pay  to  bring  out  of  dead 
formalism  a  life  such  as  this  ? 

Did  it  not  pay  to  teach  little  humpbacked  Ko- 
lar,  the  jewel  found  on  the  side  of  old  Taurus,  who, 
when  "  bound  on  four  sides,"  learned  to  looked  up, 
up  beyond  the  peaks  of  her  native  mountains,  till 
she  saw  Him  who  alone  could  open  the  way  for  her  ? 

Yes,  sometimes  there  was  even  compound  in- 
terest, as  in  the  case  of  the  women  who  mobbed 
the  missionary.  He  afterwards  found  them  with 
their  "  Gospel-hole  "  in  the  wall,  trying  to  get  from 
the  chapel  a  few  crumbs  of  the  bread  of  life.  Oh, 
how  sweet  it  was  to  preach  to  them  there  !  Perhaps 
you  have  never  heard  of  this  "  Gospel-hole."  When 
Susie's  papa  first  went  to  the  city  of.  Choonkoosh, 
the  women  mobbed  him.  At  a  subsequent  visit  one 
of  these  same  Amazonian  women,  got  into  a  room 
next  to  the  chapel,  and  made  a  little  hole  through 
the  wall,  in  order  to  hear  the  missionary  preach. 
And  again,  still  later,  when  they  heard  that  he  was 
coming,  and  their  new  church  was  not  quite  ready 
for  use,  they  got  up  a  plastering  bee,  some  mounting 
the  ladder,  trowel  in  hand,  while  others  passed  up 
the  plaster,  that  when  the  missionary  reached  the 
place  he  might  preach  to  them  in  the  new  house. 


DOES  IT  FAY? 


They  were  like  the  nnpohshed  diamonds,  needing 
only  to  be  brought  under  the  Master  workman's 
hand  to  come  out  jewels  of  the  first  order. 

Did  it  pay  the  missionary  woman,  who  went  to 
the  little  room  on  the  housetop,  and  wath  stammer- 
ing tongue  taught  the  five  or  six  little  girls  who 
came  in  there  to  learn  to  read  ?  That  little  school 
has  grown  into  the  Female  Department  of  Armenia 
College,  where  Miss  West,  Miss  Fritcher,  Mrs. 
Williams,  and  Miss  Warfield,  of  sainted  memory, 
have  taught,  and  Misses  Seymour  and  Bush  are 
still  teaching.  Ask  these  grand  women,  whose 
superiors  America  cannot  furnish,  whether  it  pays 
to  leave  the  land  they  love,  and  the  friends  dear  as 
life,  to  labor  among  Armenia's  daughters.  Well 
might  they  point  for  answer  to  our  Mount  Holyoke 
in  Eden,  where  there  is  almost  a  continuous  revival, 
and  very  few  leave  the  school  without  giving  evi- 
dence that  they  belong  to  Christ,  and  expressing  a 
desire  to  labor  for  their  people. 

They  would  point  you  to  the  nearly  two  hun- 
dred laborers  who  have  gone  out  from  this  nursery 
of  piety,  to  labor  for  their  benighted  sisters..  Among 
these,  is  Amy,  the  once  rude  girl  from  a  Koordish 
home.  They  would  take  you  to  the  examination 
of  her  school,  where  the  tall,  dignified  teacher  goes 


152         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

through  the  exercises  in  a  way  that  makes  your 
very  heart  thrill  with  intense  interest.  Listen  to 
her  little  girls  as  they  recite  their  Bible  lesson. 
Can  the  children  in  our  American  Sabbath-schools 
do  better  t  Three  short  years  ago  that  teacher  was 
a  poor  wanderer  among  the  Anti-Taurus  moun- 
tains, without  a  ray  of  gospel  light  to  cheer  her 
wretched  life. 

They  would  tell  you  what  Kohar,  the  humpback, 
is  doing  for  Egin's  proud  sisters,  who  felt  that  no 
one  could  teach  them.  But  she  is  the  one  God  has 
chosen  from  a  mean  mountain  village,  to  honor  in 
this  work.  He.  brings  one  of  Egin's  "honorable 
women,"  clad  in  her  silks,  her  hair  white  with  the 
frost  of  seventy  winters,  to  sit  at  Kohar's  feet  and 
learn  to  read  God's  word.  No  longer  need  the 
little  cripple  fear  to  go  from  house  to  house,  for 
Nazloo  Hanum  is  her  pupil  now,  and  none  insult 
her.  No  longer  does  she  write,  "  I  am  alone ;  I 
have  no  friends  here,  and  I  long  for  the  dear  teach- 
ers and  friends  in  Harpoot ;"  but,  "  Praise  the  Lord 
with  me,  he  has  given  me  twelve  sisters  and  many 
children,  whom  I  cannot  leave  even  to  come  back 
to  my  loved  work  of  teaching  in  the  Seminary. 
You  can  get  another  teacher,  but  who,  will  care  for 
the  sisters  and  children  here  if  I  leave  them.  T 


DOES  IT  FAY? 


153 


Then  there  are  the  Mariams  and  Martas,  the 
Annas,  the  Saras  and  the  Markareeds,  doing  in 
scores  of  villages,  on  plain  and  mountain-side,  the 
blessed  work  of  introducing  Christian  homes  which 
we  saw  Eva  doing  in  Aghansi,  while  schools  taught 
by  pupils  of  our  Seminary  are  preparing  hundreds 
of  intelligent  women  to  adorn  and  perpetuate  these 
homes.  Three  years  ago,  in  the  89  Protestant 
schools  in  the  Harpoot  mission  field,  there  were, 
with  2,080  young  men  and  boys  under  instruction, 
965  girls;  while  610  men  and  women  were  taught 
by  "  little  teachers,"  who  went  from  house  to  house 
to  give  lessons — a  total  of  3,655  persons  under  Bible 
instruction,  leaving  out  of  the  estimate  the  large 
number  taught  in  Armenian  schools,  which  had 
been  opened  as  a  result  of  missionary  influence. 

Thus  we  see  that  thousands  of  the  daughters  of 
Armenia  are  waking  up,  and  coming  out  of  the 
bondage  of  ignorance,  superstition,  and  degradation, 
to  a  new  life  of  intelligent  Christian  civilization. 
Of  the  1,200  members  of  churches,  more  than  a 
third  are  women,  and  the  proportion  of  female  mem- 
bers is  constantly  increasing. 

Come  with  me  to  the  wilds  of  Koordistan,  more 
than  a  week's  journey  from  Harpoot,  where,  until 
recently,  woman  was  too  ignorant  even  to  call  on  the 

Daugliters  of  Armenia.  20 


154         DAUGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 

saints,  or  the  "  mother  of  God,  "and  in  her  distress 
could  only  pray  to  the  brazen  bird  on  the  Yezidee 
military  standard,  "  O  holy  bird,  hear  us  !"  Here, 
patient,  gentle  Sara,  the  wife  of  Kavme.  the  Koor- 
dish  missionary,  laid  down  her  life  after  a  few  years' 
toil,  but  having  labored  long  enough  to  convince 
some  scores  of  the  degraded  sisters  of  these  wilds 
what  a  Christian  home  may  be.  Kavme  was  the 
first  missionary  sent  out  by  the  evangelical  churches 
of  Harpoot. 

It  was  no  small  trial  for  Sara  to  leave  her 
friends,  and  go  among  such  a  people,  but  I  am 
sure  that  as  she  looks  down  now  upon  that  inter- 
esting work  in  dark  Koordistan,  she  feels  that  it 
has  more  than  paid. 

Or  come  with  me  to  Husenik,  Hooelie,  Hula- 
kegh,  Percheng,  Palu,  Egin,  and  a  score  of  other 
towns  and  cities,  and  see  the  crowds  who  gladly 
come  to  meet  the  missionary  lady,  crowds  whose 
hostility,  a  few  years  ago,  was  only  equalled  by 
their  ignorance.  Notice  the  eagerness  with  which 
many  of  them  listen  to  the  story  of  the  cross,  hear 
the  earnest  prayers  of  some,  and  learn  the  story  of 
their  home-life,  their  struggle  to  rise,  of  the  slow 
and  painful  but  real  progress  they  are  making,  and 
you  will  say,  "  Pay !  why,  it  seems  as  if  nowhere 


DOES  IT  PAY i 


155 


can  work  for  Jesus  be  found  which  pays  like  this  ! 
I,  too,  must  be  a  missionary !" 

Many  there  are  among  these,  it  is  true,  who  sad-  • 
den  our  hearts  by  turning  in  scorn  or  indifference 
away  from  the  gospel  message.  But  multitudes  do 
this  on  this  side  the  ocean.  We  do  not  need  to  go 
to  Armenia  to  find  those  to  whom  the  gospel  mes- 
sage is  proving  a  savor  of  death  unto  death.  For 
such  let  us  labor  more  earnestly.  And  for  such  as 
we  cannot  reach  by  personal  influence,  let  us  labor 
by  prayer,  and  by  contributions,  sanctified  by  pray- 
er. 

Yes,  this  work  does  pay ;  and  every  follower  of 
Christ,  whether  old  or  young,  rich  or  poor,  should 
have  some  share  in  it.  How  can  any  who  bear  the 
name  of  Christ  be  indifferent  to  such  a  work — His 
work } 

And  we  cannot  but  rejoice  that  many  Christians 
are  awake  to  this  blessed  work,  and  we  have  seen 
how,  as  one  fruit  of  their  prayers,  and  gifts,  and  la- 
bors, Armenia's  daughters  are  coming  up  to  take 
their  places  with  us  as  workers  for  Christ.  But,  in 
our  joy  over  these,  let  us  not  forget  the  millions  of 
that  land  who  are  still  sunk  in  little  better  than  pa- 
gan ignorance,  and  among  these  their  conquerors 
and  rulers  the  proud  followers  of  Mohammed.  For 


DA  UGHTERS  OF  ARMENIA. 


them  too  a  work  is  beginning  in  the  Seminary,  in  a 
daily  Turkish  lesson,  the  aim  of  which  is  to  prepare 
Armenia's  daughters  to  tell  the  gospel  story  to  their 
Moslem  despisers.  and  oppressors.  May  we  not 
hope  and  believe  that  God  has  in  store  for  these  res 
cued  Armenians  the  great  privilege  of  carrying  this 
gospel,  which  has  elevated  them,  to  the  daughters  of 
Islam  who  dwell  in  their  country  ? 


DOES  IT  PA  V? 

To  darkness  and  to  sin  enslaved, 

In  Satan's  power  I  lay; 
King  Jesus  broke  my  bonds — I 'm  saved ; 

You  ask  me,  "  Does  it  pay  ?" 

Rather  ask  Him,  who  suffered  all, 

Gave  all  the  gain  to  me. 
Endured  the  scourge,  the  thorns,  the  cross, 

That  I  might  rescued  be. 

He  tells  me  he  is  satisfied ; 

He  loves  to  save  from  sin ; 
On  earth  his  constant, only  joy 

Was  bringing  sinners  in. 

And  now  he  wears  a  glorious  crown. 

Enthroned  in  power  above. 
He  sends  his  promised  Spirit  down 

To  do  this  work  of  love. 

And  says  to  me,  "  Go  thou,  and  work, 

Lo  I  am  with  thee  still." 
Though  it  paid  not,  I 'd  still  work  on, 

I  love  to  do  his  will. 


DOES  IT  FAY? 


I  would  not  leave  it,  if  I  might, 
For  all  the  world  could  give; 

I  love  to  point  poor  souls  to  Him, 
And  see  them  look  and  live. 

And  then  He  tells  me,  by-and-by 

He  will  in  glory  come, 
To  give  his  toiling  children  rest 

In  his  own  heavenly  home. 

A  starless  crown  I  would  not  wear, 
Nor  go  to  heaven  alone ; 

My  Saviour  gives  me  work  to  do; 
I  '11  toil  on  till  'tis  done. 

Sisters  and  children,  will  you  help 

In  such  a  work  as  this  ? 
Then  by-and-by  we  '11  share  its  joy 

In  heaven's  unending  bliss. 


DATE  DUE 

(Iff-  

■'01 

CAYLORO 

PniNTEO  IN  U.S.A. 

